A Night in Black Manor
by BlueTiger321
Summary: A group of friends are dared to go into a terrifying place on Halloween night. Will they come out alive or will the horrors within get them?
1. Chapter 1: The Dare

Chapter 1: The Dare

BlueTiger321: Hello everyone! I'm back, and I'd like to thank you all for selecting my story! I know that in my Upcoming Stories I said I was going to do a _Simpsons Treehouse of Horror_ parody, but then I decided to scrap it and instead write my own original Halloween story. So this will be a cartoon crossover fiction with some characters I'm sure all of you are probably familiar with by now. With that being said, I hereby declare that all the characters used in this story are property of their respectful owners but the story itself is of my own creation. So, I hope you all get scared and enjoy yourselves at the same time, and I especially hope JusSonic and Amber Pegasus will like it. You'll both see why in later chapters!

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The setting of Toon City was bustling as it was with every day. Everywhere cartoon characters went about their usual business as was their custom, but this day was particularly special. Halloween had just arrived, and all over the city every citizen treated this day like it was sacred, for no other being appreciated this holiday like toons.

Just like humans, toons would be performing the same traditions: preparing their homes for trick-or-treaters, stockpiling on large amounts of sugary treats, and most of important of all, dressing up in festive and/or ghoulish costumes. But for some, Halloween wasn't just a time for celebration; it was also a time for creating mischief.

One group of toons who were now sitting in the heart of the illustrious Toon City Park waited patiently. They were a group of six: four boys, one girl and a strange creature. What was truly odd about them was that three of them appeared human while the other two figures looked to be humanoids. They were garbed in their own clothing that all made them look like part of a team, and everyone in the city knew them to be the legendary Storm Hawks.

The leader of the group was a teenage boy with red hair and green eyes, and was clothed in a red and blue suit with pieces of armour scattered around his body, and he also kept two daggers on his back. His hands covered in brown gloves with black fingers tapped against the sides of his legs while he tapped his brown boots on the pavement. All this time waiting was starting to get him impatient and he didn't know how else to relieve his boredom. "I hope the others get here soon," he said.

The teenage girl of the group stood up from a park bench and walked over to the boy. Her chocolate brown skin complimented her bluish, black hair and amber eyes along with her blue and yellow dress. A blue choker was held neatly around her neck while a light blue crystal dangled from the centre. "Aerrow, will you relax?" she said, addressing the boy. "I'm sure the others will be here."

The boy now known as Aerrow breathed and replied, "You're right, Piper. It's just that I'm a little excited about our plans for tonight."

The third teenage boy walked up to his friends. Like Aerrow he also had armour plates all over his body, but his suit was blue and yellow that matched his spiky blonde hair and blue eyes. "Well you should be excited," he said, "because it is going to be the best Halloween bash ever!" The boy continued by doing an air guitar move.

All it did was make the others slap their palms into their faces in embarrassment. They knew their friend was prone to foolish acts and they had to suffer because of his silliness.

The only adult of the group, who was a green-skinned amphibian-like humanoid called a Merb, walked up behind the boy. His black hair streamed down to the right side of his face and revealed his black eyes, and his brown suit had an X-shaped armour plate over the chest. Two silver earrings also adorned his left ear and he walked barefoot with his three-toed feet. As soon as he was close he said in a scowl, "Finn, I'm begging you for the love of all that's sacred to never do that again."

The boy known as Finn merely pouted at the request. "Someday Stork, you'll be wanting my autograph when I become a success," he said.

"Yeah," said Piper. "That'll be the day when pigs fly." Everyone in the group then laughed at the comment, except for Finn who only frowned with great displeasure.

The other humanoid of the group came up to Finn and patted him on the back with his large hands. His form made him look to be a walking rhinoceros that wore a green and brown suit with armour plates all over his body, and his hooved feet remained bare. His grey eyes and hair made him look old but everyone knew him to be a teenage Wallop. Without realising his own strength, he accidentally knocked Finn to the ground while consoling him.

Getting up and rubbing his sore spot, Finn said, "Junko, you really gotta go easy on the slapping."

Junko could only stand and laugh sheepishly at his mistake. "Sorry," he said.

The last member was the small animal, which looked to be a blue-furred hybrid between a monkey and a weasel. Even with his fur, he still wore a blue and purple suit to make himself feel like he was a true Storm Hawk. His brown eyes set against yellow irises opened wide when he saw what was in his direction so he caught everyone's attention by letting out chirps and moving around his purple-skinned paws.

Aerrow was the first to notice it. "What is it, Radarr?" he asked.

The little guy called Radarr then pointed over to where he last saw what was coming. All the Storm Hawks complied and looked. What they each viewed brought smiles to their faces.

Coming from the distance were two people walking together side by side. The one on the left was a teenage boy. His black hair was slanted forward but still showed his blue eyes. His clothing was simple: a white T-shirt with red trim and a red oval in the centre, blue jeans and red and white tennis shoes.

The person who joined him was an Asian girl who looked slightly younger than her companion. Her long black hair flowed freely down her back, but what was truly distinctive about it was the strand on her left side, which was dyed a deep pink. A pair of brown eyes and freckles over her nose made her look adorable, and her clothing consisted of a green T-shirt with a pink dragonfly-like symbol in the centre, blue jeans with the waist short enough to reveal her midriff, brown shoes and a brown bracelet on her right wrist with a purple gem in the centre.

"All right!" said Aerrow. "Danny and June are here!"

The two new teens arrived, and all the Storm Hawks ran up to them. The group wasn't complete yet, but at least now they could discuss their plans.

"So guys, do you have good news for us?" asked Piper.

"Yeah," said Finn. "I can't wait to see the rockin' place you've found for the party!"

Upon hearing Finn's comment, June bit her lower lip and scratched the back of her head. It was like an unsettling feeling formed inside her and she would have to explain it. "Um, yeah, about that," she said.

Her gaze was then fixated on her boyfriend Danny and she saw that he was trying to act as innocent as possible by shifting his eyes away and whistling nonchalantly. Seeing this didn't take kindly to her so she was forced to narrow her eyes and jab her elbow into Danny's ribs. The attack made the boy yelp in surprise and rub the spot where June hit him. This made him realise that he would have to tell the others what happened.

Danny thought of the right words to say but decided that there was no way to put it lightly. "Here's the thing, guys," he said. "We did manage to find a place for the party, but when we went to go check it out... I went into ghost mode to get a better aerial view and, well, I accidentally knocked into a chandelier and set off my ecto-blasts and..."

Seeing that her boyfriend was having trouble finishing his sentence, June decided to finish it for him. She said, "Basically, Danny destroyed the whole building due to his clumsiness. Now we've got no place to hold the party." This left June in a sour mood. "Thanks a lot, Danny," she said sarcastically.

Hearing this news had now weakened the other's spirits. The party was supposed to be the best thing they've done in a long time and now they had nowhere for it.

"Well, this puts a damper on things," said Stork.

Aerrow tried to remain positive despite the recent turn of events. "It's okay, guys," he said. "We'll just find another place before it's too late. Besides, at least we've still got our costumes."

Just then, footsteps were heard coming from behind the group. Everyone turned around to see five other people coming their way: three boys and two girls. The one up front was a bald boy dressed in a yellow and orange robe with black pants and shoes. What was truly remarkable about his appearance was that blue arrows were tattooed on his head and forearms. Now the friends were all together.

Junko looked on and said, "Hey, here come Aang and the others. Maybe they've got some good news for us."

Aerrow hoped that Junko was right, so he turned around to face Aang. "So, do you have our costumes all set up?" he asked.

Aang didn't respond, but instead let the smallest of his group answer, which was a blind girl clothed in a green and yellow dress with her black hair tied to a bun. She sensed that Aang wasn't talking so she punched him in the arm to instigate him. "Go on and tell 'em what happened, Twinkle Toes," she said angrily.

"I was going to, Toph!" he said. The boy fixed his gaze back on Aerrow. "Sorry guys, but all the costumes are ruined."

The others gasped at what their friend said. "Ruined?" Piper said in disbelief. "How did this happen?"

One of the other boys, who was dressed in a blue shirt, pants and gloves and had his brown hair tied to a ponytail, stepped forward to reply. His blue eyes shifted to Piper as he spoke. "Apparently, Aang thought it would be a good idea to practice his firebending right near our costumes," he said. "So you can thank him for that."

The girl next to him who was wearing a blue dress placed a hand on the boy's shoulder to get him to back off. Her long brown hair flowed down to her waist and her blue eyes looked like fabulous sapphires. With concern in her voice she said, "Sokka, go easy on him. It was an honest mistake and at least I was there to put out the fires before anything else could happen."

The boy named Sokka looked at his sister, thinking that she made a valid point. "Well that's all well Katara," he said, "but now we still don't have any costumes. And now we can kiss our security deposit goodbye."

The last member of the group was a teenage boy with messy black hair and yellow eyes wearing a red shirt and pants along with black boots. A burn scar on the left side of his face went from his eye and stretched all the way to his ear, making him look like some kind of monster but he still had a pure heart. "I hope you guys have had better luck than us," he said.

Aerrow only shook his head, and his cohort Radarr also chirped sadly and did the same. "Not really Zuko," said Aerrow. "We've lost the place where we're supposed to hold it." But Aerrow knew that he still had to think positive. "But this is only a minor setback. We're still holding the party and we've just got to think of a way to fix it before it starts. We'll just find new costumes and tell everyone we've sent our invitations to about the change in location."

Hearing the mention of the invitations made Finn open his eyes in shock. He hoped no one else would notice but Danny soon picked up on it. "Is something wrong, Finn?" he asked.

All Finn could do in response was shift his eyes and laugh sheepishly. Everyone soon gathered around him to hear his explanation.

"Finn you did remember to send out the invitations, right?" asked Aerrow.

Scratching the back of his head, Finn replied, "Uh yeah, well you see, around the time you asked me to e-mail all the invitations I kinda had other stuff to do like work on my Skimmer and practice with my crossbow. I guess I lost track of it, so I really never sent them out."

The news reached everyone's ears and they all groaned with disappointment. Finn's ineptness had once again shown itself and all his friends had to pay for it.

"Tell me whose bright idea it was to leave Finn in charge of the invitations," said Stork.

"So let's get this straight," said June. "We've got no setting for the party, all our costumes have been burnt to a crisp, and now no one knows about our party!" The girl proceeded by stomping her foot on the ground, and her Te Xuan Ze strength had caused a crack in the pavement. "Can anything else go wrong today?" she asked.

Everyone then turned around when they heard a call in the distance. "Hey there, losers!" said a male voice.

The group of friends all recognised the voice and they saw three figures coming towards them. Sokka turned to June and said, "You had to say it."

In front of everyone now stood the new group of people and each of them looked much different in appearance and age. The first was a large teenage boy with blonde hair and dark blue eyes in a black shirt, a red and white sports jacket, blue jeans and white shoes. The second was a burly man with purple hair and eyes dressed in a dark purple shirt and dark green pants with orange armour plates scattered around his body. The third was an albino teenage boy with red hair and eyes wearing a black trench coat with matching pants, boots and gloves, yellow-tinted goggles kept secure on his forehead and a brown backpack with the straps criss-crossed over his chest. Everyone knew this group of three to be the meanest bunch of all.

Danny got up to confront the first member of the bullies. "What are you doing here, Dash?" he demanded.

The teenage boy known as Dash leaned down so his eyes were level with Danny. With a sneer he said, "Oh, me and my crew were just in the neighbourhood when we heard about your little party. It's too bad for you that it went down the crapper!" The boy then added his cruel laughter.

At that point the burly man known as Snipe came up and said, "Aw, what's wrong? Are the little babies upset about their stupid party?"

The third boy named Jack also came up to add his insults. "Yeah," he said, "'cause now you... won't be able to... you know, party."

Everyone then gave Jack an odd look for coming up with such a weak insult. The tension was broken when Dash glared at him and said, "Dude, just keep your mouth shut and let us handle this."

"Yes sir," Jack replied and stared at the ground in shame.

Aerrow wasn't going to put up with Dash's taunting. Narrowing his eyes, he marched up to him and got close to his face. He said, "Listen you jerks, we're not here to take your bullying, so why don't you leave us alone?"

Dash held up his hands in defence and said, "Whoa, take a chill pill! We didn't come here to fight."

"Then why are you here?" asked Zuko.

With a wide grin, Dash explained, "Well, we just came by to see if you dweebs were up for doing something really fun tonight, since it is Halloween."

"...Like what?" asked Toph.

"Why don't we go scare some snot-nosed trick-or-treaters?" Snipe suggested.

"Or maybe we could T.P. and egg some houses..." added Jack.

"Shut it, you morons!" shouted Dash. "No. What I've got in mind is much better."

Feeling curious, Finn asked, "And what's that?"

Dash chuckled and said, "Why don't all of you go into Black Manor?"

Everyone soon gasped at the mention of the name of the location. Radarr was so overcome with fear that he rolled his eyes back and fainted to the ground while giving a long chirp. Black Manor was known as an infamous tourist attraction in Toon City, and no one dared enter it.

"You want us to go into Black Manor?" Katara asked bewilderedly.

"Why would we do something so asinine?" said Piper.

"Yeah," said Aerrow, "and why should we listen to you creeps?"

This time Dash got into Aerrow's face and smirked. "Because if you don't," he said, "we'll go around town and tell everyone that you're all chicken."

Junko shuddered at the thought of having to go into Black Manor. "I could live with that," he said.

Aang wasn't being intimidated by Dash's threat. "C'mon you guys, let's go," he said.

With that, the entire group all turned around and started walking out of the park. As Aerrow walked past Radarr, he picked up the little guy and saw him still frozen in fear over the mention of Black Manor. His eyes were open with fright and his mouth was stuck open, but the Storm Hawk leader was still able to carry him over his shoulder.

Dash and his gang watched the others walk away without getting what they wanted, but then Dash knew of how he was going to get them to accept his dare. "Boys..." he said.

With that, Snipe and Jack both started acting like chickens by flapping their arms and clucking madly. The taunting had gotten through to Aerrow as he stopped in his tracks. He knew that he shouldn't have to do something so stupid, but he somehow got the nagging feeling that he didn't want to be known as a coward, especially since he was a Sky Knight.

Aerrow walked back up to Dash with rage in his eyes. All his friends then turned around and stopped to watch him do something incredibly absurd. Looking straight into Dash's eyes, Aerrow pointed his finger at the bully and said, "You're on!"

"What?" Aerrow's friends all said in unison. Radarr also heard him accept the challenge and so he shook off his paralysis and chirped along with the others.

"Great," said Dash. "Meet us there tonight – that is if you've got the guts." He turned to his friends and said, "Let's go, boys!" The bullies all headed out of the park, laughing madly at what they've just accomplished.

Aerrow's friends all gathered around him to find out what compelled him to do something so heinous.

"Aerrow, are you nuts?" said June.

"You just told Dash that we'd go into Black Manor," said Sokka, "and I mean, _the_ Black Manor!"

"Yeah," said Stork. "I'd expect this kind of thing from Finn, but you Aerrow?"

"Hey!" Finn protested.

"Aerrow, I hope you know what you've gotten us into..." Piper said worriedly.

"I hope so too, Piper," said Aerrow.

The sudden realisation then struck Aerrow: he and all his friends were about to head into the most frightening place in all of Toon City. Now he would have to live with the guilt of forcing them all into the unknown.

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BlueTiger321: Well folks, that's the end of the first chapter.

Aerrow: I hope everyone goes well for all of us in Black Manor.

BlueTiger321: You know that it won't, Aerrow.

Danny: Yeah, and thanks a lot for dragging us into your problem Aerrow!

June: I say we all get together and beat him to a pulp!

Everyone: Yeah!

Aerrow: Hey, it was an honest mistake! Please don't be mad. :(

BlueTiger321: Anyway, be sure to stay tuned when I put up the next chapter, so please remember to read and review.


	2. Chapter 2: The Legend

Chapter 2: The Legend

BlueTiger321: Well now the whole group is going into Black Manor. Is it truly a horrifying place, or is it all just superstition? You'll have to read on and find out for yourselves.

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It was now night time in Toon City. The spirit of Halloween was now in full bloom with everyone donning their costumes and enjoying the merriment. But the darkness also held a foreboding sense in another place.

Just outside of the city area was a large forest. The rustling from the wind had caused all the trees to lose their leaves so they all looked like tall monsters that would eat anyone or anything in sight. Crows flapped around the starry sky, releasing their caws to add a sense of impending doom to the scenery. Everyone in the city knew that no one would dare set foot in this forest at night no matter how brave or foolish they would be.

The only people who actually ignored the rule were now walking through the dreaded woods. They were Aerrow and his friends. Whether he wanted to accept it or not, Aerrow had now made a foolish mistake by giving his approval for Dash's challenge. Now he would be forced to enter a forsaken place along with his friends, or else they would all be subject to ridicule.

As they slowly made their way to their destination Aerrow contemplated about how they were going to attain their proof of courageousness. He had heard tales about the Black Manor and how it was supposed to be haunted, but they hardly seemed true. Somehow, he thought, this might be easier than it looked.

But Aerrow's friends weren't sharing his thoughts. Each one of them displayed a look of fear as they marched through the forest. Just then, they all froze in their tracks when they heard howling. They looked up and saw that the moon was full and it must have been a wolf that made the noise. The abrupt sound did not lighten up their spirits in this desolate place.

"Aerrow, are you sure we have to do this?" Piper asked out of concern.

"Yeah," said Danny. "I mean, since when do you care about what those boneheads think about us anyway?"

Stork got up and added his own thoughts. "The way I see it," he said, "we're probably doing this because we either have nothing better to do on Halloween night or because Aerrow's pride is at stake. Either way, we're all going to meet our inevitable doom."

Aerrow then breathed in, feeling guilt and shame rise within him. His mind was telling him that he was the one who accepted the dare and his friends didn't have to suffer because of it. Turning around to face them he said, "Listen guys, I know I did a stupid thing but I don't think you all have to come with me. I'll just go confront Dash and his crew and tell them I'm doing this by myself."

All the others stood silently as they took in Aerrow's words. They knew he was right for making a foolish decision but they didn't want him to do it alone. Aang got up in front and told the Sky Knight what they would do.

"That's very noble of you Aerrow," he said, "but we're friends and we stick together no matter what."

"Yeah," added Katara. "We've had good times and bad times together and we always managed to come out on top."

"We're with ya, buddy!" said Junko.

"If any of us were in the same situation, then you'd do the same thing for us," said Zuko.

All the others nodded with approval, and Radarr looked up at the boy and gave a wide smile while churring happily. This made Aerrow glad to know he could count on his friends even if the outlook was bleak.

"All right," he said. "Now let's get to it!"

"Yeah!" said June. "We're gonna show those buttheads not to mess with us!"

With that the group kept walking through the forest until they were finally at the spot. There in front of them they all turned their heads upward when they were in front of a large metal gate stationed between two stone walls. After years of enduring the elements, the gate had become rusted and worn down. In between two bars was a large lock that kept a chain in place to prevent anyone from intruding. Everyone looked to the right side of the gate to see a plaque on the wall with the words _Black Manor_ inscribed on it.

Sokka gulped nervously at the sight of this place. He looked around to find that Dash and his gang hadn't arrived yet. "You know," he said, "maybe we should leave right now so those guys won't notice..."

But it was too late. Leaves were heard rustling on the ground and everyone turned around quickly to see Dash, Snipe and Jack laughing wickedly. The bullies all made their way to the gate along with the group.

"Well, well, well..." said Dash. "I didn't think you pansies would show up!"

"Well we did," replied Finn. "And now we're gonna show you that we're not afraid of anything."

"Ooh," said Snipe. "Big words coming from a member of the Wimpy Club...!" The burly man proceeded by poking Finn in his shoulder. The Storm Hawks' sharpshooter didn't take it too well as he soon got aggravated.

Aerrow stepped in to intervene before things really got out of hand. "Enough with the trash talk," he said. "We're here to play your little game and we don't want any more trouble."

"So quick to the point," said Dash. "All right, here are the rules: you all have to go into Black Manor and stay in it for at least one hour. If you do then you'll prove you're not a bunch of sissies. If you don't then..." Dash then snapped his fingers, which gave Snipe and Jack the order to once again act like chickens.

Everyone in the group was starting to get tired of the chicken act, especially Radarr. Just hearing the sound of a chicken had brought back horrible memories of the chicken that always stalked him. The furry co-pilot felt a shiver down his spine just thinking about it.

"Okay, we get it!" shouted Aerrow. Snipe and Jack ceased their chicken impersonations and faced the group along with Dash. "But I just want to make one thing perfectly clear. We're only doing this to prove to you that nothing bad will happen to us in there and this whole idea of a haunted house is ridiculous."

"Whatever you say, dude. It's your funeral," said Dash. "But do you really wanna know the story behind this place?"

Feeling curious, June asked, "What is it?"

Dash gave a wicked smile as he explained the story of Black Manor. "I've heard that three people once lived in the house and they were the best of friends. They each shared a fortune because their families were the richest in all of Toon City. But then one day, one of them went super crazy and murdered the others in their sleep because he wanted the fortune all to himself. He thought he finally had everything he wanted, but then the ghosts of his friends came back to haunt him for his selfish act, and he ended up taking his own life to atone for his sin. Now their spirits wander the halls of the mansion, forever cursed in their own home."

The story was over and Dash saw that most of the group weren't scared in the least by it. The only ones who were shaking madly and showing a horrified look were Sokka, Junko, Stork and Radarr.

"That's the story?" said Danny. "It doesn't seem that frightening at all."

"Well you better hope it's not true, or else you'll be digging your own graves when you step in there," said Dash.

Aerrow had finally had enough of all the taunting and superstitions. "All right, let's get this over with..." he said.

Aang looked at the gate and the lock placed around it. "So how are we supposed to get in there?" he wondered.

Toph pushed past everyone saying, "Step aside, ladies! This is a job for the master earthbender!" The blind girl felt around until she could feel the lock and chains. Then with a mighty pull, she used her enhanced earthbending ability to rip apart the metal. The lock and chains lay on a pile on the ground, and now the gate could be opened.

"Whoa!" said Jack after watching the amazing feat. "I wouldn't want to meet her in a dark alley."

"Shut up, stupid!" said Dash.

Aerrow brought his hands over the gates and slowly swung them open, letting the rusty hinges creak after so many years of staying motionless. All his friends joined after him and they saw the courtyard to be just as depressing as the entire forest. The plants lining the path up to the mansion were all withered, and the soil looked solid as a rock so nothing would ever have a chance of thriving on it.

_It's time to show them what we're made of_, Aerrow thought.

When everyone in the group had entered the mansion's area, the gates behind them were slammed shut. Everyone turned around to see Dash, Snipe and Jack with their hands over the bars. It was another cruel trick played by them to scare the group.

"One more thing," said Dash. "I hope you all brought a clean pair of underwear, 'cause you'll need 'em!" The bullies then laughed maniacally at causing so much grief.

The group of friends said nothing in response. The only thing they did was turn their backs and walked up to the mansion. As each of them walked, their footprints echoed in the night and went along with the chirping of crickets, the cawing of crows, and the hooting of owls. It was like an eerie symphony that seemed to have no end.

"I still can't believe we're doing this," said Katara.

"You heard what Dash said," said Zuko. "We just have to stay in the house for at least an hour, or else he and his cronies will never let us live it down."

"I'm surprised that he even knew what an hour is," Piper said jokingly.

"So do you really think ghosts are in there?" Finn wondered.

"Who knows?" said Danny. "But Aerrow's got a point. We'll be able to prove that there are no ghosts in the house. And if there are, then my ghost sense would tell me."

"Yeah," said Aerrow. "And besides, it may be an incredibly creepy-looking house but that doesn't mean any ghosts are haunting its halls. I mean appearances aren't everything, right?"

Just then, everyone stopped in their tracks when they finally reached the house. They all looked up to see its spooky magnificence. It was an old Victorian-style mansion made up of three floors. The entrance had pillars supporting the overhang while a balcony stood above it. The windows were elegantly designed with purple curtains lining the insides. But the most notable feature was the rooftop covered with black shingles and the house's black exterior. This truly gave the house's namesake of Black Manor.

Looking at the house, Stork then said to everyone, "Welcome to the deepest circle of Hell."

Junko was still looking at the house when he noticed from the corner of his eye Toph standing next to him and smiling. Out of curiosity he asked, "Why are you so happy?"

"I just realised something," she replied. "If there are ghosts in the house then I won't be scared, because I won't be able to see them! That's one of the perks of being blind."

"C'mon guys, we can't stay out here forever," said Aerrow.

The Sky Knight walked up the steps to the front doors. He placed his hand on the brass doorknob and slowly turned it, half-expecting something to happen. After a while there was nothing, and then he finally pushed the door open. All his friends then exhaled their breath when they saw Aerrow was safe, and so they all joined him into the mansion.

Unknown to the group, there were three mysterious figures that saw them entering from the balcony. The darkness kept their identities a secret and they all laughed devilishly at what they just witnessed.

"Well," said one figure in a female voice. "It looks like we have some new guests in our humble abode."

"Yes," said the second figure in a male voice. "What do you think we should do with them?"

The third figure seemed the most powerful of the group. He stood tall and proud and his eyes glowed a deep crimson. After letting out a short chuckle he said, "I think we should give them a warm welcome."

* * *

BlueTiger321: Holy crap! :O I hope Aerrow and the others are expecting what's in store for them!

Aerrow: Can't we just skip right to the ending?

Piper: I don't like this at all.

Sokka: It's too scary! Make it stop!

BlueTiger321: Oh, pipe down you crybabies! So folks, now the group will get to see what awaits them inside the dreaded mansion. And I hope this left you all quaking with fear. Until next time...

Mysterious Figures: Read and review!


	3. Chapter 3: Welcome to Black Manor

Chapter 3: Welcome to Black Manor

BlueTiger321: And now we're back with the next chapter! So, judging from the last chapter, it seems that Black Manor does have its dark secrets. Now Aerrow and the others are going to experience firsthand what those secrets are – and not in a pleasant way.

* * *

The door to the mansion slowly crept open, and Aerrow and all his friends walked inside. They all knew there was no turning back once they took the first step. If Dash's gang saw any of them rushing out then they would be labelled as cowards for the rest of their lives. But one thing was for certain: none of them ever wanted to come to Black Manor at all.

As soon as they all got inside the house, the door was left open but it was unnoticed by everyone. Suddenly, the door was closed shut by some unseen force. The sound of the door slamming was loud enough to startle everyone and they all turned around to find it happening.

Through the dark Aerrow could see that no one was close enough to the door to cause it. Whether he wanted to believe it or not, he thought it must have been something out of the ordinary that caused it. But he didn't want to alarm anyone of the possibility that ghosts do lurk the halls of this mansion, so he came up with another explanation.

"Must've been the wind," he said.

Piper was smart to bring along enough flashlights for everyone to use, but Aang and Zuko simply lit a small flame in their palms using their firebending. The lights were cast and everyone looked around the main hall. All around them they could see the house's interior. Elegant furniture sat neatly in each room, paintings that depicted formal people hung from the walls, a large set of stairs went up to the second floor, many halls stretched on for what seemed like miles, and a crystal chandelier dangled above their heads and glistened in the light. It was truly a sight to behold and showed what a fabulous house it once was, but years of neglect had also created a layer of dust everywhere along with spider webs covering most of the items.

Aerrow looked around the house just as Radarr jumped onto his shoulders. "Wow," he said. "It looks absolutely amazing in here."

"I know," said Katara. "Just imagine what it would've looked like years ago."

"Ah, I'm sure it's nothing too exciting," said Toph. No sooner did she say that when she walked over and bumped into Junko, almost making the Wallop fall on top of her. The wooden floors made it impossible for her to see since she couldn't sense vibrations in it. "This sucks! I hate not being able to see!" she cried in anger.

Junko took pity on the girl's condition. "Here, let me help," he said. The Wallop then picked up Toph and carried her over his shoulders, letting her legs sit between his neck. "I'll be your eyes for you," he said happily.

"Well, I guess it's better than always running into things," Toph said jokingly.

Still taking in the sights Aang said, "I wonder what really happened to whoever lived here."

"That's a good question," said Stork. "And I'm guessing that when they were alive they didn't have much decorating sense, because this place has got a disturbing appeal to it."

Then out of nowhere, everyone heard a sound similar to an organ playing music. It came unexpectedly and managed to frighten almost everyone like they were about to jump out of their skin. The only ones who weren't terrified by the ominous sound were Aerrow and Finn. The Sky Knight looked at his marksman to find the sound coming from Finn's cell phone. Finn picked up his phone and answered it to end the ringtone.

"Uh, my bad," said Finn.

All the others then looked irritated. Finn's idiotic nature had once again annoyed them and they all looked like they were going to hurt him. They all thought there was nothing funny about organ music in this kind of setting. Finn, meanwhile, tried talking on his phone.

"Hello?" he said. A few seconds passed but he couldn't hear anyone on the receiving line. Finn gave up and put away his phone. "It's dead."

June was still aggravated for what Finn did. She looked menacingly at him and cracked her knuckles. "You dummy! I've got half a mind to kick your butt into next week!" she said.

Finn held up his hands in defence, but then Aerrow stepped in between him and June before she could cause any severe injury. "Calm down," he said. "I'm sure we're all a little tense right now."

"Well it's kind of hard to calm down when we're in a terrifying place in the dark and anything could just jump out of nowhere and drag us to our death!" cried Sokka.

Aerrow could see that all his friends were now on edge ever since they walked into the mansion. If they were going to make it through this place in an hour then he had to figure of a way to get them to work together. Now, he thought, would be an opportune time to apply his leadership skills.

"Okay, everyone listen up," he said calmly. This had gotten his friends to pay attention to him. "We just have to try and stay clear-headed and we'll get through this in no time. Danny, has your ghost sense picked up anything?"

"No," replied the halfa, "and that's probably the best thing so far."

Now Aerrow thought about how to get rid of the dark. "Piper, how long will these flashlights last?" he asked.

"Not for much longer," she admitted. "The crystals I used don't have a lot of power."

"Well there may be a fuse box around here somewhere. If we can find it, then maybe we'll shed some light in this house. We should split up."

"But what about my cell phone?" asked Finn.

"That's not important right now," said Aerrow.

"But that's the thing. I just had it charged up and –"

"Finn!" snapped Aerrow. "Drop it!"

With the plan set, everyone broke into groups to find the fuse box. Each group went down a separate hallway: Aerrow, Piper, Stork and Radarr took the first on the left; Junko, Toph and Finn went down the right; Danny, June and Zuko went straight; and Aang, Katara and Sokka took the hall behind the staircase.

While everyone walked, Finn was worried about his phone not working but Aerrow thought it irrelevant. Was something going on this house? Finn hoped that wasn't the case.

* * *

The first group walked down their chosen hallway in a peaceful manner. More paintings lined the walls, almost as though they stepped into a gallery.

Before long, Piper decided to break the silence. "Hey Aerrow," she said. "Did you really mean what you said to Dash? That you're just doing this to prove to him and his friends that the tales of Black Manor aren't true?"

"Of course I did," Aerrow replied. "I figured this would be the only way to get them off our backs. I know it sounds kind of silly, but how else would you think I'd do it?"

Stork then gave Aerrow his own thoughts. "Oh, there were plenty of ways," he said. "You could've just walked away from them and pretended like it never happened, or you could've told them to mind their own business. But instead you chose the path into possible bone-chilling nightmares!"

"Nothing bad is going to happen to us Stork," said Aerrow. "Before you know it, the hour will go by in a flash and we'll be safe and sound."

The only one who kept silent was Radarr. He walked upright on his hind paws while admiring the paintings. His eyes scanned the one closest to him, which was of a man in a black tuxedo. The little guy smiled at how well it was crafted but then something happened: the painting started to shift right before his eyes. The man was now replaced by a skeleton dressed in a tuxedo standing against a hellish background.

Radarr was scared out of his wits at what he just saw. He ended up jumping onto Aerrow's back while chirping madly.

"Radarr, what's wrong?" said Aerrow, trying to calm down his co-pilot.

In response, Radarr chirped and pointed at the painting. Everyone shone their flashlights in that direction and was left speechless. All they saw was a painting of a man in a tuxedo. Radarr then chirped confusedly. He could've sworn that it was different.

"This place must be getting to you, buddy," said Aerrow.

"All the more reason why we should get the lights working," added Piper. "Now let's go."

The group resumed their walk through the dark hallway, and Radarr looked back at the painting. What he saw next made his fur stand on its end. The painting shifted back to the skeleton and it started moving its jaw, emitting laughter low enough for only Radarr to hear it. The furry Storm Hawk opened his mouth in shock at the display. Now he was starting to think the mansion really was haunted.

* * *

Finn, Junko and Toph travelled down their hallway. The sharpshooter knew that the Wallop was his closest friend and therefore would be more understanding about his cell phone suddenly going dead.

"I'm just saying that it's a little suspicious why it would stop working like that," said Finn.

Junko put his hand to his chin to think of the problem. "Well, maybe this place doesn't get a good reception," he said.

"That can't be!" replied Finn. "You heard it ringing, right?"

Both Junko and Toph then gave their friend a mean look. They did remember how the phone gave off the organ music and how it nearly scared them half to death.

"I said I was sorry," Finn said to his defence. "Anyway, don't you think something strange is going on here?"

Toph leaned over Junko's head and got into Finn's face. Smirking, she said, "Don't worry. If you get scared then you can hold my hand. Maybe that'll make you feel better." Laughter then exited Toph's mouth at the joke she made. Not before long, Junko started laughing along with her.

Finn, on the other hand, was only sulking at the joke made at him. For once he wished people would take him seriously.

The group walked through a new section of the hallway, and on one table was a bust of a male head. It sat proud even as the three friends walked past it. But the moment they did, the bust suddenly turned its neck like it was real and gave the group a malicious stare.

Finn stopped momentarily when he got the feeling he was being watched. Turning his head revealed to him the bust he just passed in its original form like nothing had happened.

"Finn, hurry up," called Junko.

The call brought Finn back to reality. "Coming!" he shouted.

* * *

Meanwhile, Danny, June and Zuko walked through the hall they selected with Zuko leading. The light from his flame was bright enough to make everyone's vision clear. They could see a room up ahead and they all hoped it would contain the fuse box.

June looked around the hall, her nerves feeling like they've been shattered into a million pieces. She couldn't understand why but being inside the house gave her a bad vibe.

Danny took notice of his girlfriend's worried state. "What's the matter, June?" he asked.

The girl knew she couldn't hide her troubles any longer. "Um, well..." she said, "I've gotta be honest with you Danny. I'm a little scared of being in this place. Part of me wished that Aerrow didn't take the dare."

"...Part of you?" Danny wondered. "What did the other part wish for?"

"Well, I guess I thought going into a spooky place for Halloween was kinda cool. And being with you guys just made it that more exciting."

Danny understood what June was saying and knew exactly what to say. "Well June," he said, "I'm a little scared too, but you're right about one thing: as long as we're together then we should have a great time."

June then gave a silly smile at her boyfriend. It made her feel better to know that she could always depend on Danny to lighten the mood. "Thanks Danny," she said. Immediately, June reached out and planted a kiss on Danny's right cheek.

Danny rubbed the spot where June kissed him and smiled back. A warm feeling washed over him that suddenly made getting through the dare to become easier.

Zuko, however, wasn't sharing their feelings. He could hear his two friends talking and thought it was neither the time nor the place for romance. All he did was sigh and roll his eyes.

The mood between the friends was broken when Zuko looked into the room. "Hey guys," he said, "look over here."

Danny and June joined with their friend to see what he discovered. Looking through the door frame, the group saw they entered the house's kitchen. An old, gas-powered stove sat neatly against the wall with the refrigerator and the sink right next to it. Rows of cupboards and shelves were painted white to match the walls. There was even a kitchen island set up for preparing meals with a rack full of knives dangling above it.

The three friends stepped inside to find what they needed. But try as they might, there was no sign of the fuse box.

"It's not here," said Zuko.

"Then where else could it be?" June wondered.

As the group tried to figure out where to go next, the knife rack began to stir. Everyone was oblivious to the sound as though each knife had a mind of its own.

* * *

The last group had just reached a room after breaking away from the others. Aang led the way with a flame flickering in his palm while Katara and Sokka walked next to him. To the Avatar, it almost felt like he was travelling with his friends on another grand adventure. Just the sense of diving into the unknown was enough to get him in a good mood.

He looked at his friends to see if they felt the same way. Katara was taking in the mansion's ambience while Sokka stood on his guard with his sword at the ready. Aang wished that they wouldn't have to feel so nervous, especially since they had him to get their backs.

"So guys," said Aang, "what do you think we should do when we meet back with the others?"

"Frankly I would rather hightail it out of this death trap waiting to happen," replied Sokka.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I agree with Sokka," said Katara. "Something tells me the worst is yet to come."

"Come on, you guys," pleaded Aang. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

Neither Katara nor Sokka replied. Instead they all searched the room for what they needed. Katara only set her eyes around the walls to carefully look for the fuse box. Around every inch of the wall she checked, not missing a single detail. Her search eventually led her to a mirror hanging beside the door. The girl was so startled by it that she yelped in surprise.

_Now even I'm starting to scare myself_, thought Katara.

When the young waterbender turned away from the mirror, she didn't notice that her reflection hadn't responded the same way. Instead it stood there in the mirror narrowing its eyes like it was going to reach out and grab Katara into the mirror with her.

* * *

Aerrow and his search party kept walking down the hall. They eventually came into a large room that was only decorated with a few chairs and a large plant with a bulb and vines inside a vase. What really surprised the group was that the plant was still green, unlike the dead ones they found outside.

_Probably plastic_, thought Aerrow.

Piper shone her flashlight around the room just as its light bulb began to sputter. Hitting the base only made it shine once more before it continued its flashing. "My flashlight's about to go out," she said.

The boy Sky Knight knew they had to get the power running soon, and that's when he spotted something off to the side. There was a gray metal box standing against the wall with various wires connected to it going through the wall. A smile crept over Aerrow's face when he finally found the fuse box. He and his friends wasted no time in running over to it and opening the cover.

"Okay," said Aerrow. "I think I should be able to fix it."

Piper and Stork shone their flashlights into the fuse box so Aerrow could see his progress. The lights started flickering once again but the red-haired teen could still get his work done. While Aerrow was working with the fuses, something long and slender began to slither on the floors but everyone in the room was too busy to take notice. The only thing on their minds was fixing the electricity.

Aerrow had finally finished his work with the fuse box just as the flashlights finally ran out of power. The boy then pulled a lever and the room was now flooded with light. The boy Sky Knight was amazed the electricity was still able to work after so long.

"Well, that wasn't too bad," said Aerrow.

All of a sudden, everyone screamed as they were being pulled along the floor. Whatever grabbed a hold of them was now snaking its way up their bodies and restraining their arms. Everyone looked to see that vines were dragging them, and then they screamed even louder when they saw the source. The giant plant had now come to life and held everyone up close to the ceiling, and the bulb in the centre split open to reveal large teeth inside its leaves and saliva dripping from the corners.

They all tried to struggle free but the plant's vines were too strong. All they could do was scream in fright and hope someone would hear them.

* * *

Finn, Junko and Toph were still together when the two boys saw the lights were on, and they soon got a feeling things would turn out for the better.

"Someone must've switched it back on," said Junko.

"Finally," said Finn. "It was starting to get creepy in here."

Then without warning, the entire hallway began to shake violently. The tremors were so great that it caused the doors to randomly bang along with the vibrations. Finn and Junko now got nervous looks on their faces upon seeing this while Toph began to worry.

"Guys, what's happening?" she said.

The next thing they knew, everyone was thrown to the ground when a crack formed in the floor and a green pulse of energy spread throughout the hall. Finn and Junko screamed when they were cast aside from Toph who screamed as she hit the floor hard. The blind girl groaned and rubbed the spot where her body absorbed the fall, hoping she didn't break any ribs in the process. Toph got up but was now more terrified when she couldn't see from the wooden floor.

"I can't see," cried Toph. "Guys, I need your help!"

Finn and Junko had been knocked unconscious from the blast of energy. Things then turned unlucky for Toph as the crack in the floor started to expand. She walked as far as she could until the crack stretched open to reveal a pit filled with the same green glow. Toph screamed as she held onto the edge for dear life.

"Someone, help me!" she shouted.

* * *

Back in the kitchen, Danny, June and Zuko were glad the lights had turned on and they could now rejoin with their other friends. They headed for the exit when all the knives unsheathed themselves from the rack. The blades shone in the light as they all drifted in mid-air and focused on the group.

Zuko then immediately turned around and set his face into panic. He managed to grab hold of the others and shouted, "Get down!"

Danny and June both yelped as they were pulled to the floor by Zuko, and the knives zoomed past them before they could cut into anyone's body. The three of them hid underneath the kitchen island as best they could to avoid the knives, but the blades soon changed their trajectory and headed once again for the group.

"Not good!" said Danny.

Everyone soon rolled out of the way just as the knives flew down once again. The second they were out of harm's way when they saw the cupboards and the shelves began shaking. Within that time, every pot, pan and kitchen utensil soon began floating above everyone's heads with the same intention – attacking the group.

"What do we do?" said June.

"What do you think?" replied Danny. "It's time to fight back!"

Danny then concentrated hard as two white rings appeared around his abdomen. They then went up and down his body and began to change his form. Danny was now clothed in a black suit with white gloves and boots, along with a white collar and belt. His hair had now turned a ghostly white and his eyes glowed a faint green. A white D was also emblazoned over his chest. Danny had now changed into his persona, Danny Phantom.

* * *

As Aang, Katara and Sokka looked around the room now with the lights on; they heard a small moaning sound. It was low and it reminded them of someone they knew.

"Strange," said Aang. "It almost sounds like –" The boy Avatar cut off his sentence when he turned around and saw something that made him feel like his heart sank into his chest.

"What?" asked Sokka. "Almost sounds like what, Aang?"

In response, Aang pointed his shaking finger to the wall and said, "Katara..."

The brother and sister turned to where their friend was pointing, and there they saw Katara's reflection in the mirror moaning. Suddenly, the reflection turned to the group and whispered, "Welcome to an endless nightmare..."

Now they could all see the reflection start to bleed black ooze out of her eyes and mouth that soon filled the entire mirror. The ooze had now begun to seep out of the mirror and made its way onto the floor.

Everyone then screamed when they saw the ooze was now taking Katara's shape with its eyes glowing a deep red. To them it was like they had entered an endless nightmare.

* * *

The plant continued to crush Aerrow, Piper, Stork and Radarr with its massive vines. Try as they might they couldn't quite seem to escape. The bulb opened up once more to show everyone its sharp teeth as it emitted a low roar.

Aerrow moved his right arm around in an attempt to free himself. He felt like his shoulder was about to dislocate but he had to keep trying for the sake of himself and his friends. Then he finally managed to get his arm out and he immediately grabbed one of the daggers on his back. The blade was ignited and glowed blue. With a shout, Aerrow slashed down and severed the vine holding him and he landed on the floor.

The plant let out a cry in agony as one of its vines had been cut. The Sky Knight took this moment to activate his second dagger and cut his friends loose. The plant was now shouting furiously for having lost its vines.

"Let's get out of here!" shouted Aerrow.

The others all nodded with agreement and ran out with their friend. Now there was no denying that the house was haunted.

* * *

Toph kept screaming while her hands held onto the edge of the gaping hole. The green energy swirled below her like a mighty vortex that would consume anyone who had fallen prey to its force.

"Help! Someone, please help!" Toph shouted.

What the blind girl didn't notice was that the hole was now starting to close and would either crush her or cause her to drop into the pit. By that time Junko was the first to regain consciousness. His eyes were set in shock upon seeing his friend about to fall into the hole.

"Hang on Toph!" shouted Junko.

The Wallop got up and ran as fast as he could. Toph tried to hold on but her grip was starting to slip. Her hands were now exhausted from grabbing the floor for so long when they finally gave way. A scream escaped her lips when she thought it was finally the end, but it then changed when a giant hand reached out and grabbed her. There was Junko lying on his stomach. He then used his mighty Wallop strength to pull up his friend with ease. At that point the hole finally sealed up and restored the floor to its original state.

Finn had also regained consciousness when he walked up to the group. "Now that we're not dead, I say we get out of this place like... now!" he said in desperation.

Junko and Toph both nodded to their friend's request and so they made their way back to where they started.

* * *

A group of knives came hurtling towards Danny who sent them flying away with an ecto-blast. The green beam had dispersed the knives and caused them to crash into the walls.

Next, Zuko was up against an army of pots and pans. They flew down at the teen but were then knocked away when Zuko unleashed a jet of flame from his fists. The fire burned the pots and pans and caused them to clutter around the floor. Zuko wasn't finished when he noticed more pots forming up behind him and so he sent his left foot back and released another fireball to destroy his foes.

June had managed to grab a pot Zuko took down and used it to smack away whatever came at her. Dishes broke, forks and knives had stuck into the walls, and pans were smashed to the floor. The girl was so focused on her task that she didn't realise a meat cleaver was coming up behind her.

"June! Look out!" shouted Danny.

The cry had put June on alert and she picked up the closest thing to her, which was a wooden cutting board. Thinking fast, she turned around and held the board up to her body and used it as a shield. The cleaver dove at her and got stuck with the tip protruding on the other side.

"That was close!" said June.

By that time all the kitchen utensils were now destroyed. Zuko looked at the others and said, "I don't want to stick around to see what happens next! Let's find the others and get out of here!"

Danny and June complied and headed out of the kitchen, hoping that their friends were thinking the same thing.

* * *

The replica of Katara stood in the middle of the room, its oozy form rippling around and its eyes glowing like rubies. Everyone in the room had gotten into a battle stance, ready to take action.

The fake Katara then lashed out its arm, stretching it to an incredible length. Aang took initiative by creating a wall of air to block the incoming attack. The ooze retracted and went back to the fake Katara. It gave Sokka the opportunity to run while executing a battle cry. He held up his sword and slashed downward, cleaving the ooze monster down the middle.

Sokka smiled as he thought he delivered the coupe de grâce. "That's how it's done!" he said confidently.

The Water Tribe boy was left stunned when he saw the monster was reattaching the two halves he split. It then raised its arm once again to strike but it never succeeded as it was hit by a blast of water. Sokka saw Katara hold out her water carrier and bend the water from inside it to attack the creature. Then breathing in, she formed the water around the monster and transformed it into ice. Everyone saw the monster was now trapped in an icy prison.

"Nice work, Katara!" said Aang.

"Yeah, but I don't know how long it'll last," replied the girl. "We better get out of here as soon as possible."

"No arguments here!" said Sokka.

The trio exited the room where they would soon meet up with their friends. Once they were gone, the ooze monster frozen in the ice stood still but soon its eyes started to glow with radiance.

* * *

Everyone around the house ran as fast as their legs would carry them, wanting to get away from whatever horrors they faced. They soon stopped at the main hall, happy to know that they made it to the exit and that everyone else had made it safely.

Aerrow got up first to face his friends. "Guys," he said, "I think it's time we leave!"

"Gee, what was your first clue?" said Stork. "When you saw how creepy the mansion looked or when the killer plant tried to eat us?"

"You think you had it rough?" said Danny. "We almost got chopped up by flying kitchen utensils!"

Toph got off from Junko and said, "Well it couldn't be any worse than almost falling into a bottomless pit!"

"Guys!" shouted Piper. "Let's focus on getting out of here! No amount of humiliation could ever be worse than this!"

"...Agreed! Now let's bolt!" said Finn.

Everyone then made their way to the exit, but to their surprise the doors and the windows began to change shape. A look of disbelief formed on everyone's face when they saw that the doors and windows were now gone, and all that stood there was the wall.

"The exit's gone!" shouted Katara.

"Then we'll just have to make our own exit!" said Aerrow. He then turned to his strongman. "Junko..."

"No problem!" said the Wallop.

The Storm Hawk then pulled out his Knuckle Busters and placed them over his hands. Slamming his fists together, he activated his weapons and made his hands pulse with green energy. Junko then let out a mighty roar as he ran towards the wall and extended his fist. It collided with the wall, but to Junko's dismay it started to stretch out like it was made of rubber. Then, the force from the blow caused Junko to fly backward while screaming. Everyone shifted their eyes to see Junko land on the floor hard. They all cringed when he crashed and broke a nearby chair.

Junko looked up at the others with a dazed look on his face. "Okay, big problem," he said.

"We're trapped!" June shouted in panic.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Aang said worriedly.

Aerrow was now left puzzled. Never before had he ever encountered something like this, and now he and his friends were imprisoned in Black Manor. If they didn't think of a solution then it would spell the end for all of them.

* * *

BlueTiger321: Oh no! Now everyone's trapped! What will they do?

June: Get us out of here!

Finn: Please! I don't like this story anymore!

Aerrow: Don't worry! We'll think of something... I hope.

BlueTiger321: So folks, I hope this met your expectations. Be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter. Until next time, be sure to read and review.


	4. Chapter 4: The Quest

Chapter 4: The Quest

BlueTiger321: Hi everyone! So now our heroes are trapped within the confines of the haunted house. Is there a way out or will they fall victim to its horrors? Read and find out for yourselves.

* * *

The group stood in the main hall of Black Manor, terror fixated on their faces when they found their only exit was out of reach. Each of them witnessed what kind of frightening things were capable of occurring in the house and now they were all convinced it was haunted.

Still keeping their eyes where the door once was, they all tried as best they could to think of another way out. Junko's earlier attempt had proven unsuccessful so they had to approach it from a different direction.

"If we can't break our way out, then what else is there?" wondered Piper.

That's when Danny came up with an idea. His ghostly powers could provide them with what they needed to escape. "I think I've got it," he said. "If we all grab on to each other, I can make us intangible and we can pass through the wall."

"Great idea Danny!" said Aerrow.

As per the halfa's suggestion, everyone held hands and stood in front of the wall with intent looks on their faces. This plan would have to work since it was their last hope. Once they were all connected, Danny concentrated hard and activated his power. A light blue wave passed through his body and onto everyone he touched and everyone they touched. Soon their bodies were now transparent, giving them the ability to walk through walls.

"Now let's get moving!" said Aerrow.

The group then headed off while making sure to keep the link between them. One false move and any one of them could be left behind – and no one wanted that to happen. They got close to the wall and freedom was almost theirs, but when they touched the wall an electric shock was sent throughout everyone's bodies. Whoever was controlling the supernatural forces of the house had expected this and created a barrier to prevent anyone from escaping that way.

The lightning kept coursing through their bodies until they all slumped to the floor. Everyone groaned in pain as smoke arose from their clothes and the electricity had caused static in their hair, except for Aang. The pain was so intense for Danny that he reverted back to his human form.

"Remind me to never walk through walls again," said Finn.

Once the smoke had cleared up and everyone's hair was back to normal, they all stood still as laughter filled their ears. The group looked around frantically to determine where it was coming from, but no one was in sight.

The first male voice, which was the leader, then spoke ominously. _"You may as well give up trying,"_ he said. _"There's no chance you'll ever get out of here!"_

"Who are you?" Aerrow demanded. "And what do you want from us?"

The female voice replied, _"We are the ones who control Black Manor."_

_ "And what we want from you is to hear your screams!"_ the second male voice finished.

The leader once again spoke. _"You have just entered a horrendous nightmare that will continue until all of you draw your last breath!"_ he said. _"So prepare for your worst fears around every corner!"_

_"What you've seen up until now was only a taste of what we're truly capable of," _said the female voice.

_"Tonight, all of you shall experience a true Hell on Earth!"_ said the second male voice.

The laughter once again resumed and struck fear in everyone's hearts. What they didn't want to believe had actually come true. Now they thought it was hopeless and the only way they were going to leave the mansion was when they were dead. But Finn thought he should try to intimidate the ones in control.

"You think you've got what it takes to tangle with us?" he said, his voice full of confidence. "Well I've got news for you: you're the ones who're going down!" The laughter had ended, and Finn thought he had them on the edge. "Yeah, that's right! When we find you, you're gonna wish you had us leave when we had the chance! And whatever you've got planned for us is nothing compared to the butt-kickin' we're gonna dish out on you! So go ahead! Do your worst!"

It seemed as though Finn's scare tactics had worked, but then the rulers of Black Manor were doing as Finn requested. All the lights in the house had now gone out at once, creating total darkness again. Everyone then gave Finn another mean look for getting them all into an even worse situation.

"Not what I was expecting," said Finn.

"Nice going Finn," Stork said sarcastically. "You've once again managed to get us completely screwed."

Sokka tried to feel his way around the darkness, hoping not to bump into anyone or anything. "Guys," he said, "something tells me we shouldn't be standing around here anymore."

The boy then felt the wall from his outstretched his hand. He moved it around to feel the familiar touch of plaster, but instead what he felt was sticky. A nervous gulp went down his throat when his skin made contact with the slimy substance. Sokka didn't want to turn around but he had no choice. When he did his face went into complete terror. His hand was now touching a sinister-looking eye.

Sokka screamed and ran towards his friends just as another eye formed on the wall and glowed green along with the other. All the friends then exchanged shocked glances when they saw a mouth growing out from the wall that emitted laughter.

"I'm glad you're all here," said the monster, "because it's dinner time!"

At that moment, the monster opened its gaping mouth and began to suck up everyone in a mighty gust of wind. Everyone shouted as they were being drawn in by the force of the wind, and they all quickly grabbed on to the railing from the stairs to avoid being eaten. Radarr, unfortunately, wasn't close enough to grab the railing and was drawing closer to the monster's mouth. Aerrow saw his co-pilot chirping with fright while running on all fours away from the monster. Just then, the Sky Knight reached out with one hand and grabbed a hold of Radarr's ears. The poor little guy felt like he was now being sucked into a vacuum as the wind from the monster kept going. The wind was now so strong that everyone was dangling above the floor while holding onto the railing.

"I... can't... hold on!" cried Katara.

Aang then had a plan. Letting go of the railing, he drifted away from his friends. They all watched helplessly as they thought he was going to sacrifice himself. Just as Aang got close enough to the monster, he grunted and pushed out his hands. His airbending had created a gust powerful enough to counter the monster's attack. The monster was left momentarily stunned and closed its mouth, causing everyone to fall on the floor when there was no more wind.

"Run!" shouted Aang.

The group then went behind the staircase and down the hallway, leaving the monster to growl furiously after having lost its meal.

Aerrow and all his friends had rushed into the room where Aang, Katara and Sokka had once entered. Everyone was inside and the door was closed shut by Piper. They were all glad that nothing spooky had formed in this room so they were all given a moment's reprieve. Zuko had then lit a flame in his palm to allow everyone to see.

Junko wiped some sweat off his brow after everything that occurred. "Man, I thought we were goners there for a second," he said. He walked away from the others only to find a large chunk of ice standing in front of him. Looking inside he saw the ooze monster that replicated Katara. It caused him to shriek and run behind a couch.

"It's all right Junko," said Katara. "That thing won't be bothering us."

Junko came out from the couch after his friend assured him they were safe. But now the group had to attend to more pressing matters.

"What are we supposed to do now?" said Toph. "No matter where we go, there's always something to scare the living snot out of us!"

"I'm trying to think," said Aerrow. "If only there was some way we could anticipate what they're gonna throw at us next."

Zuko then had rage brewing inside him after listening to Aerrow's plan. He walked up to the Sky Knight's face with the flame still lit, making him seem like a vengeful spirit. "Why should we listen to you?" he shouted. "You're the one who got us here in the first place! Now we're all gonna die in this Godforsaken house and it's all your fault!"

Aerrow then displayed a look of anger like it was spreading like some infectious disease. "Well at least I'm trying to figure a way out of here! What are you doing to help?" he yelled.

June stepped in to separate the two of them. "Guys!" she said worriedly. "We shouldn't be fighting amongst ourselves!"

"June's right," said Aang. "Arguing isn't going to get us anywhere. If we're going to survive this ordeal then we have to work together."

Aerrow and Zuko then calmed down and faced everyone else but moved away from one another. Never before had they seen their two friends so angry like this. Being trapped in the house, they thought, had probably caused it. Concern for their friends' well-being had put everyone in a worrying mood.

The red-haired teen took in a deep breath and addressed his friends. "Okay," he said. "First we've gotta get a hold on our situation. Danny, do you think ghosts are behind this?"

"I'm not sure," the halfa replied. "From what I can tell, this is definitely the work of ghosts but nothing has set off my ghost sense. These ghosts must be really powerful if they can hide their presence."

"How are we supposed to fight these ghosts when they have the whole mansion under their control?" said Piper.

All of a sudden, another voice filled everyone's ears but it wasn't like any of the voices they heard earlier. The voice was male and was more pleasant than the others, and felt like it was full of wisdom. _"Go to the library and find the most valued possession..."_ it said.

Everyone was put on guard when the voice echoed throughout their minds. It made them all wary and expect something to follow.

"Who said that?" said Aerrow. "Show yourself!"

The mysterious voice once again spoke. _"I cannot reveal myself yet,"_ it said. _"If you want to escape the mansion, then you must do what I say."_ It then repeated the task. _"Go to the library and find the most valued possession..."_

The room was now quiet, and everyone stood still. They weren't sure to make of the voice calling out to them, nor were they sure of trusting what it said.

Aerrow then figured it was their only hope. He walked towards the exit and gestured to his friends to follow. "Come on," he said.

"What?" Stork said bewilderedly. "You're actually gonna do what he says? You're even crazier now than when you took the dare!"

"Stork's got a point," said Piper. "This could be another trap."

"I know, but right now we don't have any other options," replied Aerrow. "We can either wait here for more terrorizing things to get us, or we can take action and end this freak show once and for all!"

Aerrow's motivational speech had unfortunately fallen on deaf ears. No one was willing to go through such a ludicrous plan that was likely to get them killed. The only response they gave to Aerrow was worried looks.

"Come on you guys," pleaded Aerrow. "Aang, you told me that friends stick together no matter what happens. Katara, you said that we've always managed to come out on top in good and bad times. And Zuko, you said that we'd all do the same thing if any one of us was in a bad situation. I'm asking all of you as my friends to come with me because I believe we can do this."

Aerrow took a moment to let his friends consider what he just said. They all knew that there would be consequences, but if they stuck together they could beat the odds.

Piper walked up first and said, "All right Aerrow. I'm with you all the way."

"You can count me in," said Danny.

"Me too!" said June.

Zuko was still feeling a little hostile towards Aerrow for causing their predicament, but he gave a warm smile through the light of his flame. "Let's go to the library," he said.

With that, everyone marched out of the room with Aerrow leading the way. Stork stayed behind for a brief moment and said to himself, "We're all gonna die." The Merb then walked off, not wanting to be left behind.

Everyone was gone and the room was left empty, except for the ooze monster still trapped in its frozen prison. Suddenly, a crack formed in the ice that created a small hole. The ooze then gushed out from the tiny crevice and started making its way to the floor.

* * *

The floor creaked as everyone made their way to the library. The halls were dim with their only light source being the flames dancing within Aang and Zuko's palms. Now they knew to prepare themselves for the unexpected on their way to escaping Black Manor for any paranormal entity could spring up and attack at any moment.

Aerrow led the way with his spirit lifted after gaining the support from his friends. It seemed like a foolish endeavour but they would boldly head into the unknown for it was their last hope at coming out alive.

Sokka looked around as everyone kept walking, still feeling nervous of the whole idea. "Um, Aerrow..." he said. "Not that I'm questioning your leadership skills or anything, but are you sure we're headed in the right direction? Because you've never been here before and we're trying to find the library, if there really is one in this mansion."

"To be honest, I'm not sure we're going the right way either," admitted Aerrow. He then stopped in front of a large set of doors and opened them. "But all we can do right now is keep going and hope that in one of these rooms is..." Aerrow paused momentarily as he gazed around the room. He finished by saying, "...the library."

Everyone got a peek at what was inside the room, except for Toph, and they could see rows of books all lined up in large shelves. A fireplace was tucked neatly at the back of the room along with a few chairs in front. This was indeed the mansion's library.

"I guess we finally caught a break," said Junko.

"So what was it we were supposed to find?" asked Danny.

"We're looking for the most valued possession," replied Piper.

"And does anyone have a clue as to what the most valued possession of this place would be?" said Stork.

"It's gotta be some kind of riddle," said Aerrow. "Let's search this place."

Aang and Zuko had noticed some unlit candles sitting by themselves on top of a table. A portion of their flames were bended onto the candles to light them so they could be used by the others. Now everyone would have a source of light to search the library.

Around every corner and through every bookshelf, they all searched for the most valued possession but they had no luck or have any idea what it was they were searching. Aerrow and Piper had paused for a bit to give themselves some time to think.

"Any luck, Piper?" asked Aerrow.

"None," the girl replied. "I mean just what is the most valued possession, anyway?"

"Well, this is a library, so I'm guessing the most valued possession would be a book."

Piper contemplated Aerrow's suggestion, and that's when she realised it. "Wait a minute," she said. "That's it! What if we're not looking for the most valued possession but a book with the title 'The Most Valued Possession'?"

"It's worth a shot," said Aerrow.

The Sky Knight and his navigator searched the rows of books with the correct order. Once they arrived, Piper fingered over each book's title until she finally stopped on the one she needed. "Here it is!" she said.

Taking out the book, Piper blew away the layer of dust over it. The book was thick and had a blue hardcover. Written in gold lettering was the title and name of the author: _The Most Valued Possession by Y.S._

"Guys, we've found it!" called Aerrow.

All the others soon rushed over to the spot to see the object. Looking at the book, they didn't know what to make of it or where to go from this point.

"So what are we supposed to do with it?" June wondered.

"Maybe there's something inside," said Aerrow.

Piper opened up the book, and there everyone saw tucked into the pages was a square-shaped hole with a golden key fit in the middle. Aerrow reached out to grab the key and awed at how it sparkled in the candlelight.

"I guess this is what we need," said Aerrow.

Not before long, everyone then heard flapping that sounded like paper. They were all hoping that it wasn't what they thought it was and so they turned around only to find the books all flying around in mid-air.

"Is there anything in this house that isn't trying to kill us?" whined Stork.

"Everyone, scatter!" shouted Aerrow.

Immediately everyone broke away and got ready for battle. The Storm Hawks were all set with Aerrow igniting his daggers, Piper extending her staff, Finn aiming his crossbow and Junko powering his Knuckle Busters. The Avatar and his group all got ready, except for Toph who could only stay behind and not get in anyone's way. Danny had now transformed back into his ghost form while June got into a battle stance.

The books went flying at everyone. Aerrow jumped into the air and spun with his blades extended and sliced through the first wave of books. Piper was next and she spun her staff around like a windmill to knock away books coming in front of her. Finn got his crossbow ready and fired a volley of bolts that shot down each book he aimed for, and Junko used his strength to punch each book in his way. Radarr had managed to jump onto a flying book and started tearing away at the pages until there was nothing left, so he jumped off and headed for the next book. Stork, meanwhile, was defenceless and started running away from the books coming after him.

"Bad books... Bad books!" shouted Stork.

Aang came to Stork's aid by shooting a gust of air to rip each book to pieces. Katara used her water to shoot icicles that hit books in their covers and pinned them to the wall. Sokka unsheathed his sword and sliced each book that dared to cross his path. Zuko spread out his arms to unleash a wave of fire that burned the books attacking him, and they all fell to the floor in cinders.

Danny flew around in the air with books coming after him. He smirked when he thought of a plan. A bookshelf was in front of him and the books were hot on his trail. In an instant, Danny went intangible and passed through the bookshelf while the books crashed into it and fell into a big pile. Danny went back through the bookshelf and became solid. Seeing the books chasing him were now in a pile, he raised his hand and fired an ecto-blast that destroyed them.

June used her amazing agility and strength as the Te Xuan Ze to leap into the air and knock away any book that tried to attack her. Eventually, all the books were left in pieces and June landed gracefully.

Nearly every book in the library was now destroyed, and everyone surveyed at what they accomplished.

Aerrow de-activated his daggers and jokingly said, "This should be a reminder to always return library books on time."

Finn was feeling less than challenged at what they faced. "A bunch of books?" he said. "They must be running out of ideas if this is the best they could do."

No sooner did Finn say that when the fireplace was suddenly lit and flared with intensity. Everyone looked to see the fire rise out and twist into a shape. Their fear returned when the fire was now in the shape of a dragon. The beast let out a huge roar while staring down at the group.

"Uh, I'm starting to think the books were just a warm-up," said Finn.

The dragon then let out a huge breath of fire aimed at the group, but then Danny jumped in the centre and spread out his arms. He concentrated all his energy and created an ecto-shield around his friends. The green wall protected everyone from the raging inferno, but they could see Danny couldn't keep it up for much longer as sweat beaded down his forehead and he clenched his teeth. The dragon stopped its attack and Danny dropped the shield. All the energy he spent trying to keep the shield active had forced him to go back into his human form.

"Time to fight fire with fire!" said Zuko.

The dragon was getting ready for another onslaught when the firebender jumped up and shot out his legs. A fiery blast was released and caused the dragon's vision to go blurry. It ended up spraying a blast of fire that went down and ended up striking Aerrow's left hand.

"Aerrow!" shouted Piper.

"I'm fine," said the Sky Knight. "We've gotta go!"

As the beast shifted around and roared as it tried to see, the group took this chance to run. Not long, the dragon regained its sight and snaked its way after its prey.

Everyone turned to the right past a bookshelf but only to find it was a dead end. A bookshelf stood before them against the wall, and another bookshelf had prevented them from running to the side. The dragon had now caught them and all they could do was place their backs against the books and scream. The heat from the beast made everyone sweat as it drew near.

Sokka then turned around to stare at the bookshelf and began to pull out random books from the rows.

"What are you doing?" Danny said confusedly.

"You know how it's in movies where there's always a book that turns around the wall?" Sokka asked. "I'm trying to do that."

"Sokka," said Katara, "in case you hadn't noticed, this _isn't_ a movie!"

The dragon let out another furious roar as it approached the group. Everyone screamed once more as they thought this was the end for all of them. Radarr was so startled that he leapt onto Junko's shoulders and let out a terrified chirp. The beast opened its mouth and was preparing for another attack. Just then, Radarr put his paw against a book and moved it down, and then there was a clicking sound. The fire breath was unleashed and then the bookshelf spun around to bring everyone behind the wall just before the fire scorched the floor. The dragon ceased its attack and roared after losing its targets.

Inside the wall, everyone breathed heavily in relief when they were all safe. Aang lit a fire in his palm to see who saved them, and he smiled when he saw Radarr's paw clutching the book that released the switch.

"Way to go, Radarr!" said the Avatar.

The furry co-pilot saw he was the one who saved everyone from near death and he churred happily. In the light everyone could see they were now in a small room made of stone with a staircase going down. Toph felt her feet against the floor and felt giddy. She then touched it with her hands and hugged it like a mother hugging her child.

"Ah, sweet earth... How I've missed you!" said the blind girl.

Just then, Katara remembered how Aerrow's hand had been burned so she immediately got out her water and spread it around her hand, causing it to glow in a blue aura. "Aerrow, let me heal you," she said.

The red-haired teen lifted up his hand to then show everyone that his hand was perfectly fine. Even though it had been blasted with fire, Aerrow's skin wasn't burned and his glove was still in perfect shape.

"I don't believe it," said Junko. "There's not a single burn on him!"

"But... how could that be?" said June. "We all saw your hand engulfed in the flames."

"I know," said Aerrow. "But when the fire hit me, it didn't hurt. It was like it passed right through my skin without leaving a mark."

Realising that Aerrow was fine; they brushed off the feeling and focused on the task at hand.

"Where do you think we are now?" Piper wondered.

"I don't know," said Aerrow, "but I'll bet this will lead us to where we need to go next."

The voice that aided the group now called itself out to them again. _"Well done,"_ it said. _"Now you must head down into the basement and find the chest that is connected to fate."_

With that, everyone nodded and proceeded down the staircase. The steps spiralled as everyone got deeper and deeper until they all stopped. A wall was right in front of them that prevented the group from going any farther.

"Now how are we supposed to get through that?" said Zuko.

Aerrow placed his hand against the wall to think of what to do. He leaned on it and a block was pushed in that caused a section of the wall to open. Everyone stepped through just before the wall closed up again. Now they were in a completely different room. It, like the staircase, was made of stone with lit torches lining the walls. A long hallway stood before them with knight's armour standing still along the sides. At the end of the hall was a wooden desk with various scrolls covering its surface and a large red chair sitting behind it.

"It must be somewhere over there," said Piper.

"Then let's go get it," said Aerrow.

The group ran down the hall to find the chest, but to their dismay they heard the sound of clanking metal. They stopped just before they got to the desk and turned around to see all the armours come to life and walking up to the group. The sabatons banged against the stone floor while the gauntlets held out their swords, maces and halberds.

"Who didn't see that coming?" Stork said indifferently.

Aerrow turned to Stork and gave him the key he got from the book. "Stork, go look for the chest," he said. "We'll buy you some time."

The Merb willingly took the key from the boy, knowing full well he would be useless in this battle. "Fine," he said. "But just make sure to keep those walking tin cans away from me."

The plan was set, and Stork ran to the desk to do what he was told. Everyone faced the living armours with their weapons drawn or getting ready in a battle stance. Aerrow started off by bringing his blades together and firing a long, blue energy wave that collided with three armours. The attack caused the armours to collapse into a pile.

Toph smirked for now having the chance to fight back, so she stomped her foot and raised a stalagmite to crush any armours that came her way. Soon everyone joined in the fight and smashed, blasted or slashed away at the metallic foes.

The armours now lied cluttered on the floor. Everyone smiled for having thought of obtaining victory but it soon faded when they saw the armours rise up and reassemble themselves. The knights resumed their march towards the group.

"Man, that's totally unfair!" said Finn.

"Stork, you better hurry up 'cause we can't hold them off!" shouted Piper.

The Storm Hawks' pilot searched the desk through all the scrolls upon hearing the call, but there was nothing that resembled a chest. "Where is it? Where is it?" he shouted nervously.

Stork was at a complete loss and so he sat down in the chair while holding his head. If he couldn't find the chest then he and his friends were finished. Then Stork's eyes chanced upon a scroll lying on the desk in front of him. The edge of the paper stuck out from the top while the rest of it was rolled up into a canister. The Merb looked at the paper and saw it had the word _Fate_ written at the top. Stork then remembered what the voice said: Find the chest that is connected to fate. He looked on the side of the canister and strangely enough there was a keyhole.

Stork wasted no time in taking the key and placing it through the hole. He turned it and one of the drawers on the bottom left of the desk opened up to reveal a blue gem. The Merb picked it up and saw it was almost the size of his palm and figured this was what they were supposed to collect.

Everyone who fought was being forced back as the armours advanced on them. No matter how much they tried, the armours would always reassemble.

"We can't fight these things!" said Katara.

Stork ran out from the desk and shouted, "I've got what we need! Now let's go!"

Aerrow and all his friends then rushed past the armours while avoiding the swipes from their weapons. The Sky Knight had accidentally stopped in front of one set of armour just as it raised its sword. Aerrow was getting ready to fight it if need be. The armour swung down its blade and Aerrow had brought up his own blades to block the attack. But then, he saw the armour was struggling while trying to slash its sword. Aerrow gave it an awkward look at how it couldn't finish its attack but then ran out of the way as the other armours were closing in on him.

When everyone was far enough, Toph stopped and brought her arms together to earthbend a stone wall from each side to come together. The armours now had no way of getting to the group.

Everyone then ran up the exit, which was at the top of a flight of wooden stairs. Radarr was the first one up the stairs and out the door, but as soon as he crossed it the door was mysteriously slammed shut and a wooden block was placed in front of it between a set of steel handles. The co-pilot turned around and chirped to find his friends trapped in the staircase.

Aerrow got up front and tried to slam into the door to break it down but it was no use. He then thought of an alternative. "Stand back!" he warned everyone. The Sky Knight ignited his daggers and connected the hilts to each other. Bringing back his weapon, he slashed at the door but couldn't get it to open.

Danny then tried going intangible and put his hand against the door but then received an electric shock like when he tried escaping the house. He drew his hand back and became solid again. "We can't get out!" he said.

Suddenly, everyone then heard a scraping sound coming from down the stairs. They all turned their heads to see a wall of spikes slowly making its way up the stairs. This put everyone in a state of panic as they continuously banged their fists on the door.

"Radarr!" shouted Aerrow. "You've got to open the door!"

The little guy heard the call from his friend and walked up to the wooden block. He pushed up on it with all his might, but it was too heavy for him. Radarr stopped when he heard footsteps getting closer. He inched his eyes to the right and saw the ooze monster that was trapped in the block of ice standing right in front of him. The monster extended its arm and lashed out at Radarr, but the co-pilot chirped in fright and leapt away at the last second.

Back inside the staircase, the spiked wall was getting closer. There was nothing they could do to stop it and there was no other way out besides through the door. They hoped their screams were getting through as they all yelled, "Radarr, help!"

Radarr, meanwhile, was doing his best to get away from the ooze monster. Every time he dodged each attack targeted at him, and the monster was strong enough to puncture a hole through the walls. The little guy was now on all fours running from the monster, but he still needed to save his friends. He noticed how strong it was and that's when an idea formed in his head. Radarr jumped onto the wooden block and chirped to get the monster's attention. It turned around and stared its red eyes at the furry co-pilot. Then, Radarr extended his mouth with his index fingers, stuck out his tongue and blew a raspberry. This had caused the ooze monster to lash out again with its arm. When it was close enough, Radarr jumped off the wooden block before it was smashed to pieces by the monster. What was left of the barricade slid off the handles and no longer barred the door.

Everyone rushed out the door and fell into a pile when they banged against it. Katara was the first one to stand up and she gasped when she saw the ooze monster was free. Thinking fast, she bent the water out of her carrier and fashioned it into a long, slender piece. The water was lassoed around the monster and Katara hurled it down the staircase.

Aerrow had just stood up and shut the door behind the monster. He backed away and almost jumped out of his skin when the spikes had finally reached the top of the staircase and pierced through the door.

"Thanks Radarr," said Aerrow. "If it wasn't for you, we all would've ended up as Swiss cheese."

Radarr merely chirped modestly at the compliment. There was nothing he wouldn't do for his friends.

When Stork stood up, he showed everyone what he collected from the basement. The blue gem shone brightly in his hands and everyone awed at its splendour.

"So this is what we needed to get?" said Aang.

"I guess so," said Aerrow. "Now let's get going. I don't want us to stay here any longer than we need to..."

Everyone then walked down the hallway, hoping to receive their next clue from the mysterious voice. Unbeknownst to them, the black ooze gushed out from between the spikes and formed into a puddle where it began to rise.

* * *

BlueTiger321: Wow! I can't believe they all made it out alive!

Aang: Why do you have to be so mean?

Finn: Yeah! Why can't you make us go into a room filled with hot babes or something?

BlueTiger321: Well that would be too easy, now wouldn't it? Anyway folks, be sure to look out for the next chapter where things will get more intense. So, until next time...

Piper: Read and review!


	5. Chapter 5: Into the Lion's Den

Chapter 5: Into the Lion's Den

BlueTiger321: All right! Now it seems the gang has what they need in order to fight the evil presence in the house. But will they be able to use it in time? The answer is in this chapter!

* * *

The group of friends walked back into the main hall, feeling certain they were one step closer to putting a stop to all the madness they've encountered. They could all feel the house was growing more bone-chilling by the minute with every paranormal form that appeared before them. The next thing that pops up could be the one spelling disaster for all of them.

For right now, they just stood quietly and waited for their mysterious ally to give them their next task. The blue gemstone gathered from the basement shined brightly in the dark and gave them all a sense of hope they've been longing for since entering the mansion.

"I can feel it," said Aerrow. "Soon we'll be out of here. I just know it."

"Don't get ahead of yourself Aerrow," said Zuko. "We're not out of the woods yet. We still have to find out what we're supposed to do with this... thing."

"I'm sure we'd find a way even if we weren't told," said Piper.

At that moment, the voice was once again heard by everyone. _"You have all done well to make it this far, and you are now nearing the end of your quest,"_ it said. _"All that remains is for you to take the gemstone and go up to the third floor of the mansion... Once there, you will need to find the ones in control and expose them to the power you now wield."_

Aerrow felt puzzled at what the voice explained to them. "But how will we know how to use it?" he asked.

_"As long as you have pure intentions in your heart, the gemstone will guide you to victory,"_ it replied. _"Now be swift, lest the ones troubling you should try to prevent your endeavours. Have faith, and you shall prevail..."_ With the last bit of encouragement, the voice faded out of everyone's minds and left them with their goal set.

"Okay then," said Aerrow. "We better get a move on."

"Wait," said Piper. "What happens if we fail?"

"We're not going to fail. As long as we're together, we'll get the job done."

"But Aerrow," said June, "we're practically walking right into the lion's den."

"And what if some of us don't come back?" Danny said worriedly. "We barely made it out of that last trial by the skin of our teeth."

"We've already come this far, so there's no turning back now," said Aerrow. "I know you guys are all scared but we will see this through to the end. And I don't even want to think of what might happen if we don't succeed."

The Sky Knight then travelled up the staircase and all his friends followed behind him. They all thought what Aerrow said was brash but it still had to be done. So they all went upstairs to the second floor and went down the left hallway. Like the first floor, this hallway was also decorated with elegant paintings of unknown people. Everyone shifted their eyes around by the light of Aang and Zuko's flames to be on guard in case of anything showing up out of the blue.

"I hate this place," Stork whispered to Sokka.

"You and me both," replied the boy. "Once this is all over, I am done with Halloween forever."

The group all walked by completely unaware of the black puddle they passed. No one had stepped in it except for Sokka who was the last one following. The moment his boot made an impression in the puddle, it began to rise into its form. The black ooze monster had now caught up with them.

Sokka then noticed something by his feet – a black substance was stuck by the tip of his boot. It made him disgusted by its appearance and so he tried to wipe it off on the floor. When he tried to do it, the liquid moved away from his boot and slithered along the floor behind him. This made the boy freaked out for witnessing it, but turning around made him want to bulge his eyes out in horror. There was the black ooze monster standing right in front of him with its piercing red eyes sending a wicked gaze at him.

"Uh..." said Sokka, trying to get everyone's attention. Before that could happen, the monster wrapped its arm around Sokka's mouth and made him scream but it only came out as a muffle. The boy was then pulled away from the group and dragged into the darkness.

As everyone kept going, Katara looked behind her to see if her older brother was all right. But when she turned her head, she saw nothing. This left her trembling with fear after seeing her brother go missing.

"Hey guys," called Katara. "Where's Sokka?"

Everyone stopped walking and turned to face the girl. "Wasn't he with you?" said Aang.

"That's what I thought, but when I turned around he was gone."

Aerrow then hoped the worst hadn't happened to his friend. "Sokka!" he shouted. "Where are you?"

"Sokka, this isn't funny!" said Katara. She hoped her brother was up to one of his stupid jokes.

"Oh man," said Stork. "I hope whatever got him doesn't go after us next."

The Merb was walking backwards into a doorway. Just then, a black arm lunged out of the darkness and wrapped itself around Stork's waist. A horrified scream escaped Stork's mouth when he was captured, and everyone immediately turned their heads to hear it.

"Stork!" shouted Aerrow.

It was too late. Stork tried to hold onto the doorframe to keep from being captured but whatever got a hold of him pulled him away screaming. A few seconds later, the black ooze monster revealed itself from the darkness. Now everyone panicked when they saw it was back.

"Run!" shouted Aerrow.

In an instant, everyone turned around and ran away from the monster. But Junko stayed behind with a stern look on his face.

Finn turned around to see his friend just standing there in the monster's face. "Junko, come on!" he yelled.

"No!" said Junko. "I'm tired of running! I'm gonna show this thing who's boss!"

The black ooze monster then lashed its arm near Junko's feet, making the Wallop back away in fear to see a gaping hole in the floor the monster created. This gave him the incentive to finally run.

"Okay, he's the boss!" Junko shouted while he and Finn ran down the hall.

The chase eventually led everyone down another dead end. This time the wall was solid with nothing placed on it that vaguely resembled a switch. By that time the black ooze monster appeared from the end of the hall and crept its way to the group.

Finn got up front of everyone with his crossbow. "Take this!" he shouted.

A bolt was fired and went straight for the monster. When it struck its gelatinous body, instead of exploding it got absorbed. Finn was left aghast at what it did, but then shrieked when he saw the monster extend its arm to fire the bolt back at the sharpshooter. Everyone ducked down as the bolt hit the wall behind them, leaving a small hole.

"Doesn't this thing ever quit?" said Katara.

The monster got closer to the group, and that's when it saw the flame still burning in Aang's palm. It then retreated before it got near them. Everyone stood confused as to why it would suddenly draw back like that, and they realised it was threatened by the flame.

"I don't think it can take the heat," said Danny.

"Well that's good news for us," said Aang.

Before the ooze monster got too far away, Aang and Zuko ran up to it. Aang then shot out a flame from his fist that struck the monster. Everyone's suspicions proved true as the flame caused the creature to groan in pain. Its gooey form began to boil from the intense heat and it crawled away from its attackers.

"Ready, Aang?" said Zuko.

The Avatar nodded to his friend saying, "Ready!"

The two of them jumped into the air and landed in firebending stances. They then extended their fingers and released a jet of flame from the tips. The combined flames made contact with the black ooze monster and seared its body. The halls filled with groaning as the monster's body boiled like molten lava. All the others rushed in to see Aang and Zuko had stopped their firebending just as the monster melted away into the floor. The ooze then shrunk into a small puddle where it blew a large bubble before fading into nothing.

"Finally," said June. "That thing sure was persistent, but he was still no match for us."

"I say we get back to the top floor before any other freaky stuff happens," said Toph.

"We can't," said Katara. "We have to go looking for Sokka and Stork."

Aerrow stepped in, saying, "No. We should get to the third floor as soon as possible and use the gemstone to stop the ghosts."

Everyone was taken back at what they heard from their friend. Hearing him say such a thing was heartless and it did not seem like Aerrow at all.

"Aerrow, how can you say that?" said Piper. "We can't just abandon them like this!"

"I'm not abandoning them," said Aerrow. "I'm only saying what needs to be done."

Danny got up to say, "But shouldn't we at least try to –"

"No!" Aerrow snapped. "If we go looking for them we could end up trapped just like they are; then we won't be helping anybody!"

All of Aerrow's friends now looked at him with concern in their eyes. They all figured something was bothering him but it was best not to agitate him any further. Radarr got on all fours to locate where they were supposed to go next. He then chanced upon another set of stairs going upward from the far side of where the group was currently standing. The furry co-pilot let out a chirp to get their attention.

"Hey, I think Radarr found something," said Junko.

Everyone followed Radarr's chirping to see him in front of the stairs going up to the third floor, which put smiles on all their faces.

"Good job Radarr!" said June.

The little guy gave a thumbs up to everyone as they were now close to completing their goal. All of a sudden, something appeared out of the floor right behind Radarr. It was a ghostly green hand that opened up its fingers and inched closer to him.

Aerrow opened his eyes in shock at what was occurring. "Radarr, look out!" he shouted.

The Sky Knight's warning wasn't soon enough. The hand grabbed on to Radarr, making him chirp in fright until they both vanished into the floor in a green puff of smoke. Everyone soon screamed after losing their friend and for witnessing how it happened. Toph was the only one who wasn't aware.

"Guys, what's going on?" she said. "Is there anything you could share with the blind girl?"

Just then, another green hand popped out of the floor behind Toph and was big enough to wrap around her waist. A scream escaped her lips as she tried to struggle free, but she too ended up disappearing into the floor.

"Toph!" shouted Aang.

Everyone then looked stunned as the entire floor and walls now had the ghostly hands growing out of them. They all writhed on the surfaces while spreading their insidious fingers like crawling snakes.

"We better do something or we're next!" said Aerrow.

Danny then changed into his ghost form and spread out his arms. An ecto-blast came from his palms that went straight for each hand. The blasts had made the hands disintegrate, and this made everyone think to do the same. Aerrow and Piper fired blue pulses from their weapons, Finn shot his bolts, and Aang and Zuko blasted the hands with fire. Once the floor was safe to traverse, they all ran and headed over to the staircase leading to the third floor.

Just as they were about to head up the stairs, they all stopped when another hand came out in front of them but this one was much larger than the ones they had previously seen. It looked like it was big enough to trap everyone in one grasp. It swung down and made everyone turn away in fear.

Aerrow wasn't intimidated by the hand's presence and knew of how he was going to stop it. Getting his daggers ready, the Sky Knight concentrated as his body glowed in a blue aura. He then spiralled into the air while raising his weapons and his arms then appeared to have grown a pair of wings. Aerrow shot his arms forward and unleashed his Lightning Claw attack. A large blue pulse soared through the air and headed straight for the ghostly hand. The attack hit the hand in the centre of its palm, and it convulsed as the energy surged around it. Everyone looked to see the hand fall to the floor before it disintegrated.

"Oh yeah...! Score one for the good guys!" said Finn.

The group was now free to advance, but they hadn't noticed one more hand forming behind them. It then grabbed hold of the one closest to it, which was Zuko. The firebender let out a horrifying scream as the hand grabbed his leg and forced him to trip. Everyone tried to react in time but it was useless as the hand transported Zuko away from them.

"Zuko!" shouted Katara.

The waterbender was brought up when Aang grabbed onto her arm. They all stopped at the top step to catch their breath. Of the thirteen of them that entered the house, now only eight of them were together. Seeing their friends disappear before their eyes left everyone in sorrow.

Aerrow banged his fist against the wall over the loss of his friends. "Damn!" he shouted in rage. "This can't be happening!"

Piper walked up to Aerrow out of concern for his well-being. "Aerrow, come on," she said. "We're almost there. We can't give up now."

Aerrow turned to face Piper and all she could see in him was pain. After seeing this and what the teen said earlier, it made her want to comfort her friend.

"Aerrow, what's wrong?" asked Piper.

Aerrow took in a deep breath and decided to explain to everyone what had him so irate. "Zuko was right," he said. "This whole thing is my fault. I'm the one who made us come here. If I hadn't taken that stupid dare, then we wouldn't be in this mess!"

Piper then placed a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. "Don't beat yourself up over this, Aerrow," she said. "There's no way you could've known all this stuff would happen."

"That doesn't make it any less better. Our friends are gone and we're still trapped."

"But you said it yourself: as long as we're together, we can get the job done. You may not think it but the others are somewhere in this house."

"Yeah," said June. "You shouldn't have to think of this as your responsibility."

"We're your friends, and we'll do whatever it takes to help," said Aang.

The rest of Aerrow's friends all nodded in agreement. At that moment Aerrow now remembered he was never alone in this quest so there was no need for him to be the only one carrying the burden. He was now filled with confidence that he could put an end to the horror and rescue the ones who were captured.

"All right," said Aerrow. "Let's go confront those creeps!"

They all shot their fists into the air while shouting "Yeah!" and proceeded through the upper floor. Soon the group stopped in front of a large set of doors that looked rather ill-omened. When Aerrow reached out his hand to open them, they mysteriously swung open by themselves. The Sky Knight thought it weird that whoever was controlling the mansion would do something like that but soon brushed it off and entered along with everyone else.

"Well," said Finn, "at least they're welcoming us."

"Be careful, everyone," said Aerrow. "This could get ugly."

All the friends stopped in the middle to get a good view of the room. The floor was covered with black and white tiles while a chandelier much like the one in the main hall hung from the ceiling. Fabulous purple curtains lined the walls, and there was even a set of glass doors leading to the balcony. From what they could see, this was some kind of ballroom.

Everyone then turned their eyes to see something in the moonlight. There were five wooden painting stands lined in a row that each contained a painting. Getting closer, everyone gasped and backed away upon seeing them. There were their friends – Sokka, Stork, Radarr, Toph and Zuko – frozen in the canvasses, all of them in terror.

"Is that really them?" Junko said nervously.

"That's so twisted," said Piper. "Who would do such a thing?"

Suddenly, the room was filled with laughter, and everyone recognised it as the voices of the ghosts in control of Black Manor.

_"I don't think it's twisted,"_ said the female voice. _"I think it shows the plight of what you're all going through right now."_

Anger had now taken over within Aerrow. "Whoever you are, you'd better let our friends go right now!"

_"I don't think you're in any position to be making demands,"_ said the leader.

_"That's right,"_ said the other male voice. _"But don't worry. You'll be joining your friends soon enough."_

"Well you've obviously underestimated us," said Aerrow. "We've got one thing on our side that's unbreakable, and that's the power of friendship. With it, we'll take you down!"

The leader laughed at the comment. _"I'd like to see you try,"_ he said. _"Now, all of you should prepare to think your dying thoughts!"_

The entire room had now shaken like an earthquake. Everyone tried to keep their balance as best they could. The next thing they knew, green energy started to swirl around them at an alarming rate. The energy was spinning so fast that the group was now stuck inside a ghostly tornado. The wind it created was now making everyone try to keep from getting blown away, but still they stood their ground. The paintings of their friends were now spinning around them as they were caught in the energy.

"Hang on!" Aerrow shouted.

Then without warning, green skulls were coming out from the tornado and headed straight for the group gnashing their teeth. Danny and June took action by flying up and using their combined physical strength to knock away every skull. Aang and Katara then joined them with their airbending and waterbending.

"We'll take care of these things!" said Aang. "You have to find those ghosts!"

"Right!" said Aerrow. "But where are they?"

Just then, Piper scanned the inside of the tornado. She focused intently at what was drifting along with the energy and there she thought she could make out the faces of people. That's when the idea came to her.

"Aerrow!" said Piper. "The ghosts are in the swirling energy!"

Aerrow thought about this and then quickly turned his head to Danny. As the halfa was busily fighting off the skulls, he could see a blue mist coming out from his mouth. He knew this was Danny's ghost sense going off.

"Okay! It's time to end this!" said the Sky Knight.

The red-haired teen then reached behind his back and pulled out the blue gemstone, relieved to know that he got it from Stork before the Merb was captured. This had made the ghosts react to it.

_"No!"_ said the female ghost. _"How dare you bring that accursed thing here?"_

_"A weakling like you doesn't have the means to use that!"_ said the secondary male ghost.

The leader said, _"I'll kill you before you even –"_ Just then, the ghost was letting out grunts like it was struggling. After a while, he then said, _"Use the gemstone!"_

Aerrow was perplexed the ghost would suddenly say that, but he didn't need more encouragement to use the gemstone as he held it high over his head. He then remembered what the voice told him: _As long as you have pure intentions in your heart, the gemstone will guide you to victory._ Aerrow then thought about using the gemstone to free himself and his friends from evil. The gemstone reacted to Aerrow's thoughts and began to levitate from his hand. As it rose in mid-air, it emitted a bright flash that engulfed the entire room and caused everyone within it to scream.

* * *

BlueTiger321: Whoa! Just what kind of power did Aerrow unleash?

Stork: Is it something that gets me out of the painting, 'cause it's really cramped in there.

Aerrow: Hey! You're not supposed to spoil anything!

BlueTiger321: He's got a point. Anyway, I hope you all stay tuned for the next thrilling chapter. So, until next time...

Danny and June: Read and review!


	6. Chapter 6: The True Story

Chapter 6: The True Story

BlueTiger321: Okay folks! The end of the last chapter was a real cliffhanger, but everything will be answered here. And I especially hope JusSonic and Amber Pegasus will enjoy this.

* * *

The light subsided and everyone was sprawled out on the floor. They were glad that whatever the gemstone did, it managed to stop the tornado. All around everyone let out a moan like they were all writhing in agony. The battle they had encountered with the ghosts left them all exhausted and they tried to regain their strength as quickly as possible.

"Is everyone all right?" said Aerrow.

Finn managed to get up and reply, "Oh man. I feel like I just got hit by a tank."

Piper got up to get a head count of everyone. She looked to her left and saw Aerrow, Finn, Junko, Danny, June, Aang and Katara. Her eyes kept looking over the room and she paused to see the ones trapped in the paintings were now free.

"Hey guys, look!" she cried out.

The rest of the group turned around to see Piper pointing in the direction from where she was looking. There were their friends lying down on the floor and also recovering from the effects of the gemstone. Aerrow and the others ran up to them to make sure they were fine.

"Guys," said the Sky Knight, "are you all okay?"

Stork sat up to address his friend. "Oh yeah," he said. "If you call being trapped inside a painting and then suddenly getting blasted out okay..."

Sokka rubbed his eyes just as Katara helped him to his feet. "Just what happened, anyway?" he wondered.

"We'll explain it all later," replied his sister. "Right now we should get out of here."

Danny changed back into his human form when his ghost sense had once again reacted. A gasp escaped his lips when he saw the blue mist appear before his eyes, telling him the ghosts were still in this room. "Uh guys," he said, "something tells me we're not done yet."

At that moment, everyone had heard more moaning. They turned around to locate from where it was coming and they all took a step back when they saw three figures kneeling on the floor. Their bodies appeared to be hollow, indicating that they were the ghosts in control of Black Manor.

The one in the middle stood up first. He appeared to be a tall man with blonde hair, hazel eyes and a blonde goatee on his chin. He had a medium build and wore a black tank top tucked underneath blue jeans and black shoes.

The ghost to his right was the next to stand up, and he had brown hair with glasses over his eyes and was clothed in a green shirt with black pants and tennis shoes.

The third ghost was the only female of the trio, and she stood up to join the others. Her blue eyes were complimented with her brown hair tied to a ponytail, and she wore a purple blouse with a black mini-skirt and pearl pink sandals that had various jewels over its surface. A blue crystal necklace shaped like a teardrop hung neatly around her and a golden headband with a yin-yang symbol was wrapped around her forehead.

Aerrow was now on his guard for fear the ghosts would try to do something devious. The first ghost walked up to the red-haired teen with a warm smile on his face.

"Thank you," said the ghost. "You've freed us from our torment."

Aerrow thought it was a trick and so he got out his daggers, pointing the ignited blades at the ghost. "Stay back!" he warned.

"Wait!" said the ghost. "Let us explain."

The other male ghost walked up beside his friend and said, "Please. We won't hurt you anymore."

"Yes, it's the truth!" said the female ghost.

Piper suddenly got the feeling the ghosts could be trusted. "Aerrow," she called, "maybe we should hear them out."

"After what they did to us?" exclaimed Zuko. "I'd rather jump into piranha-infested waters!"

Aerrow took in Piper's words with consideration and could see solemn looks on the ghost's faces. He didn't want to believe it but he could tell they were safe. The Sky Knight de-activated his weapons and placed them behind his back.

"All right," said Aerrow. "Who are you?"

The first ghost replied, "My name is BlueTiger321."

The other male ghost then got up and said, "I'm JusSonic."

The female ghost then said, "And I am Amber Pegasus."

"We are the ones who reside in this house, and we have control over everything within it," said BlueTiger321.

"So why did you send all those creepy things after us?" asked June.

"It was never our intention to harm any of you," said JusSonic.

"We were forced against our will by a powerful spell," said Amber Pegasus.

"All of us could see it happening, but there was nothing we could do to stop it," said BlueTiger321. "It was like another personality in each of us took over and wanted to only cause suffering."

Junko then asked, "So what happened to you guys that made you so... um, spooky?"

In an instant, the lights had come on in the room and surprised everyone. The voice that aided the group then bellowed throughout the area. _"I can answer that,"_ it said.

Everyone then saw a flash of blue light appear in the middle of the room. When it faded, they all saw a man stand before them. His gray hair and long gray beard indicated that he was old and full of great knowledge. A blue robe covered his body while a pointed blue hat with a golden moon and stars covering it sat atop his head. The ghosts then bowed in respect to the man while the others stood confused.

"Master Yen Sid," said BlueTiger321.

"It is good to see you again," said Amber Pegasus.

Piper had an odd look on her face upon hearing the man's name. "Yen Sid..." she said. The navigator thought back of where she saw it before, and then remembered the initials of the author on the book she found in the library. "You're Y.S.!" she said.

"Indeed," replied Yen Sid. "We have been waiting for someone like you for so many years."

"What's going on?" said Toph, unaware of what was occurring.

"This is Master Yen Sid," JusSonic explained. "He's a powerful sorcerer and a well-respected man."

"So you're the voice we kept hearing?" asked Aang.

"Yes," replied the sorcerer. "Your efforts have helped us all in finally breaking the spell placed over Black Manor."

Aerrow brought out the gemstone, wanting a further explanation. "So what is this, anyway?" he asked.

Yen Sid took it from the Sky Knight and said, "This gemstone is a powerful object used for dispelling any malevolent magic in any given area. I had it hidden in this house, for I suspected that someone would try to take control over my apprentices."

"...Your apprentices?" Finn said confusedly.

The ghosts walked up to the sorcerer to respond to Finn's question. "Master Yen Sid created this mansion with his magic and allowed us to live in it," said Amber Pegasus.

"Wait," said Aerrow. "Can someone tell me what's really going on here?"

Yen Sid took in a deep breath, knowing of a way he could better explain what occurred in the mansion. "Perhaps it would be best if I were to show all of you the truth about this house," he said.

Everyone watched as the sorcerer spread out his arms and his hands glowed in a deep blue light. Their minds were now viewing the past as the magic took hold of them.

_Through everyone's eyes, they were now seeing Yen Sid in a large, open piece of land in the middle of the forest where Black Manor stood today. As they were all seeing the past events, Yen Sid explained to them what occurred._

"Many years ago," said the sorcerer, "I had constructed Black Manor for the purposes of completing my studies in a safe location. I chose the middle of the forest outside the city because I felt it was secluded from prying eyes."

_Through the vision, everyone saw Yen Sid lift his arms to the sky as he commanded blue magical energy to focus on one point. The energy expanded until it took the form of the mansion. Every detail of the house had been created from the rooftops and the wall placed outside to the exquisite interior. Pleased with his results, Yen Sid stepped inside his creation._

"I soon realised that if I was to finish my work, then I would need apprentices for their assistance," said Yen Sid. "But there was no one I could trust within the city, so I devised a solution – summoning forth spirits from an alternate world."

_The vision continued, and Yen Sid walked through the basement with his plan set. He closed his eyes and focused his magic to do his bidding. Then in one swift motion, he opened his hands and summoned a vortex in the wall. The vortex had then brought out the three spirits BlueTiger321, JusSonic and Amber Pegasus._

_ The ghosts looked around confusedly as to why they were brought into this world, but then they saw Yen Sid. He gave them a comforting smile like a father would give to his children, and the ghosts immediately knew this person would do them no harm._

Yen Sid explained to everyone, "Months had passed and my apprentices were supportive in my research. I taught them how to control their ghostly powers and to instruct them to be used compassionately.

"Eventually, the time had come when my studies were completed. There was only one thing left for me to do, and I was going to tell my apprentices what was to become of them."

_In the ballroom of the mansion, Yen Sid stood before his apprentices. Something felt heavy in his heart but he knew it was time for them to receive their compensation._

_ "What is it you wish to tell us, Master?" said BlueTiger321._

_ "Before I discuss it with you," said the sorcerer, "I would like to say that I am proud of all of you for all your hard work. Your contributions to my research have aided me in achieving my goal much sooner than I anticipated."_

_ "It was our pleasure, Master," JusSonic said happily._

_ "We should be the ones thanking you for bringing us into a world full of wonder," said Amber Pegasus._

_ "I am glad that you all enjoyed your time here," said Yen Sid. "As a reward for all your efforts, I am pleased to say..."_

_ The sorcerer then paused when he could feel a malevolent presence somewhere in the room. His eyes narrowed, making him seem like he recognised it. The spirits looked at their master with concern on their faces._

_ "Master, what's wrong?" said BlueTiger321._

_ Yen Sid turned his back just as a cloud of black smoke suddenly appeared near the doorway. Everyone gasped as the smoke disappeared to reveal a woman. Her skin was as pale as death while her black eyes had a sinister gaze and her black hair twisted upward to make it look like she had a pair of devil horns. She was clothed in a black robe that stretched to the floor, and clutched in her hand was a staff with a green orb at the top._

"I do not know how," explained Yen Sid, "but before I could deliver my message to my apprentices, the evil sorceress Maleficent had found me."

_Yen Sid displayed a look of rage upon seeing the sorceress. "Maleficent!" he said._

_ "My, my," she said. "I must say that I am amazed at how well you have crafted this mansion. But did you honestly think you could hide from me? Oh Yen Sid, you are an even greater fool than I imagined."_

_ "What is it that you want?"_

_ "There is no need to worry. I have no interest in your petty research, but I cannot allow you to remain here any longer. You are a great hindrance to my goals, so now I am removing you before it is too late."_

_ BlueTiger321 then shared his master's anger. "You dare enter Master Yen Sid's manor and threaten him?" he said. "You'll pay for that!"_

_ The spirits were then about to advance on Maleficent when Yen Sid brought out his arm, preventing them from going any farther._

_ "This is not your battle," said the sorcerer._

_ "But Master," pleaded Amber Pegasus, "we can help you."_

_ "Maleficent is too powerful, even with all your powers combined," said Yen Sid._

_ "There's got to be something we can do," said JusSonic._

_ "I will handle this," said Yen Sid. "All of you should leave now, for you could be placed in grave danger."_

_ The spirits didn't want to accept it, but they had to follow their master's wishes. With that, they disappeared and let Yen Sid perform his duty. The sorcerer turned to his foe and placed his arms forward to begin his spell. Maleficent smirked and already had her staff pointed at him. Suddenly, waves of magical energy came out from both of them that collided in the centre. A globe of green and blue light swirled around as the two powers pushed against each other with neither side showing signs of weakness._

_ All of a sudden, BlueTiger321 appeared behind Maleficent along with JusSonic and Amber Pegasus. The ghosts then formed their hands together as they were concentrating their ghostly powers on the evil sorceress._

_ As Maleficent kept battling Yen Sid, she sensed the spirits coming from behind her and so she pointed her free hand at them and raised her finger. The ghosts then screamed as they were all trapped inside a cage of magical energy. They tried their best to get out but the cage had rendered their powers ineffective._

_ Yen Sid looked to see his apprentices were trapped and fear immediately gripped his body. "No!" he shouted._

_ Maleficent saw her opponent was distracted and so she took this chance to fire a green beam at his body. The attack made Yen Sid shout in pain as he was consumed by Maleficent's power until he vanished in a flash of light._

_ The spirits witnessed this and so they were all displaying sorrow for having lost their master._

_ "No! Master Yen Sid!" cried BlueTiger321._

_ Maleficent then turned to her captives and gave them a devilish smile. "It was foolish of you to think you could stop me," she said. "As punishment, I think you all should do what ghosts are meant for." The sorceress then raised her staff high and it glowed with green light._

_ The ghosts then cried out in anguish as the light touched them until they all fell out of the cage. With her business concluded, Maleficent laughed wickedly and disappeared in a cloud of black smoke._

_Not long after the sorceress left, the ghosts all stood up after the attack with their eyes closed. The magic that consumed them now surged around their bodies until it faded. They all opened their eyes to reveal they were now glowing in a deep red. Maniacal laughter then escaped their lips as they would end up haunting Black Manor as evil spirits._

The vision had ended and everyone now understood how Black Manor came to be and why the ghosts were causing so much trouble.

"That's so sad," said Katara. "To think after all this time you were good but then you were turned evil."

"And it explains why you needed our help, because the spell prevented you from reaching the gemstone," said Piper.

"Yes," said BlueTiger321. "Everything that happened is because of me. If I had only obeyed Master Yen Sid's request then we wouldn't have ended up like that."

"You must not blame yourself for what was done," said Yen Sid. "You were only doing what you thought was right."

"Yeah," said JusSonic. "Besides, we were still willing to help you because that's what friends do."

Aerrow heard what the spirit said, and it made him think of how he took the dare without thinking of the consequences. A feeling of self-pity took over him for getting his friends involved, but he was glad to know they were with him even when it seemed hopeless. He then had his own question to ask. "But there's one thing I've got to know," he said. "While we were trying to find the gemstone, was it you who...?"

BlueTiger321 understood the teen's question and replied, "Yes. I had temporarily regained myself to prevent our traps from injuring you. I tried for as long as I could until the spell took hold of me again."

"Well, I'm glad we could all be helpful to you," said Aerrow. "So what happens now?"

"I'm not sure," replied the ghost. "Master Yen Sid, what was it you were going to tell us before Maleficent arrived?"

Yen Sid knew it was now time for him to give his apprentices what they deserved. He said, "I have decided that I am going to give Black Manor to the three of you. It is now your home."

The spirits then gasped in surprise for hearing what their master had to say. The mansion where he conducted his research now belonged to them.

"But Master, what about you?" said Amber Pegasus. "Where will you go?"

"You do not need to worry about me," said the sorcerer. "It has always been my intention to give this mansion to you all. You have proven yourselves to be pure in heart, and this is the reward I am giving to you because I know you enjoy living in this world. I shall go on to wherever I am needed. Before I do, you should consider the ones who have freed us as your new friends, for I see in them the same virtue as you." At that moment, blue smoke swirled around the sorcerer as he concentrated his magic. "Farewell, my friends," he said. "May you always prosper in your new home..."

The smoke had now wrapped itself around Yen Sid and dissipated, showing everyone the sorcerer was gone. The three spirits were both joyous and saddened for what their master had given to them while the others watched with lightened hearts.

"Whoa," said Finn. "That was pretty awesome of him to give this house to you guys."

"It is," said JusSonic. "Master Yen Sid will be missed but I'm sure he'd want us to be happy."

BlueTiger321 then looked at the group of friends as a sense of wonder crossed his mind. "So what were all of you doing here in the first place?" he asked.

"We were dared to come here by a gang of jerks," replied Aerrow.

Danny then took out his cell phone and noted the time on it, remembering how long they were originally supposed to be inside the mansion. His eyes lit up when he saw how much time had passed. "Hey guys, the hour's up!" he said.

"I don't believe it," said Aang. "We actually lasted an hour inside Black Manor!"

"Great...!" said Aerrow. "I can't wait to rub it in Dash's face."

"Yeah," added June. "I'm sure he and his buddies have been having fun at our expense."

Hearing what the others said had made the ghosts whisper amongst themselves. Everyone wondered what they were saying until they turned back to face them.

"If you want," said BlueTiger321, "we can help you guys get some payback."

All the friends heard the suggestion, and they all shared the same smirk. Now it would be their turn to play a trick on the bullies, and this time they would have the ghosts on their side.

Aerrow turned to the ghosts and said, "Let's do it."

* * *

BlueTiger321: Hooray! The spell on the house is broken and now it's the gang's turn to play a prank!

Aerrow: I can't wait!

Katara: This is gonna be good!

Danny: I hope Dash and the others get what's coming to them!

BlueTiger321: Anyway folks, be sure to stay tuned when I have the next chapter up and this is my way of saying thanks to JusSonic and Amber Pegasus for all their kind reviews and support. And JusSonic, I hope you don't mind that I read your story Toontasia in order to write down your appearance. So, until next time, please be sure to read and review!


	7. Chapter 7: A Dish Best Served Cold

Chapter 7: A Dish Best Served Cold

BlueTiger321: Well folks, I hope the last chapter was a good prelude to what's to come. Now the gang will get the revenge they so rightly deserve. Enjoy!

* * *

Outside the mansion gates, Dash, Snipe and Jack waited for the group of friends they dared to go inside. To them it was dreadfully boring having to spend their free time in a barren place, but they all thought it would be worth it if they saw Aerrow and the others run out screaming.

Dash tapped his foot against the ground, feeling impatient and wanting to take his frustrations out on someone or something. "What's taking so long?" he said. "Those dorks better hurry up or else we're gonna leave 'em here!"

A hilarious thought came to Snipe. "Maybe they all ran out the other way crying and wanting their mommies," he said while laughing.

"Yeah," said Jack, "or maybe, y'know, there really are ghosts in there and they ate 'em."

Dash slapped his hand to his forehead over Jack's ridiculous comment. "How many times do I have to tell you?" he said angrily. "There are no ghosts!"

"Well what about Danny being half-ghost?"

Dash was taken back. He almost forgot about Danny's ghost powers. "Well, okay, there's that," he said. "But still, I've told you before. This was just a prank to scare those nerds into thinking there are ghosts. When they come out here whining like little babies, we're gonna laugh at 'em for being suckered."

Snipe looked beyond the gate to see a couple of figures approaching. "Hey, there they are!" he said.

Dash and Jack turned around to get a good look, hoping for what they've set out to do. The group of friends got closer, and Dash and his crew smiled devilishly while they waited for screaming. Instead, their smiles turned to frowns when they saw the group casually walk up to the gate with smiles on their faces.

"Hey," said Jack, "how come they're not terrified?"

"I don't know!" Dash said in an irritated tone. "What gives?"

By that time the group had gotten up to the gate and looked at the bullies gleefully.

"Well, we did it," said Aerrow.

"We've conquered Black Manor," said Piper.

"Just like you said," said Danny.

Dash wasn't convinced by what they were saying, so he brought up his hands to slow down their gloating. "Whoa, whoa, hold on!" he said. "You dweebs actually stayed in there for an hour and nothing happened?"

"That's right," said Aang.

"Oh yeah," said Finn. "Total cakewalk..."

"It couldn't have been any easier," said Toph.

Snipe, on the other hand, was scratching his head at what they were saying. "But how?" he said confusedly.

"It's not so bad once you get inside," explained June.

"Yeah," added Junko. "There's lots of cool stuff in there."

"You might even say it was a dream vacation," said Sokka.

Radarr even added his own compliments by moving his paw around coolly and chirping, indicating it wasn't scary at all in the house.

By this time, Dash was now fuming with anger at seeing his prank backfire. "There's no way it was that easy!" he shouted.

"Actually, it was," said Aerrow. He then turned around to address his friends. "And you know what? I think Dash made us go inside because he's too afraid to go in himself."

"Hey, you're right Aerrow," said Katara. "I guess Dash and his goons are the ones who are chicken."

"What? Us, chicken...?" Dash said in protest. "Fat chance, losers!"

"Then why don't you prove it?" said Zuko.

"Yeah," said Stork. "Prove it, just like we did."

Dash only scoffed at them. Now they were trying to force his dare back on him but he wasn't going to fall for it. "I've got nothing to prove to you!" he said. "C'mon, boys! Let's blow this joint!"

With that, Dash and his crew turned around and began to head out of the forest. Seeing the bullies walk away, Aerrow turned to his friends and nodded his head. The group then started flapping their arms and clucking like chickens.

Dash had stopped when he heard the chicken noises, and it soon filled him up with unmitigated fury. He stomped over to the group and shouted, "Shut up!" Everyone soon stopped their taunting when they got Dash's attention. "I'll show you geeks that we're not afraid of anything!" he said. "Boys, we're going in there!"

Snipe and Jack walked back to their boss with worried looks on their faces. They did not share Dash's urge to enter Black Manor.

"But Dash," said Jack, "do we really –"

Dash then grabbed Jack by his collar and pulled him close while displaying anger. He then yelled through gritted teeth, "You're going in there, or else I'll give you something that'll really make you scared! Capisce...?"

Rather than receive his boss's wrath, Jack said in a weak voice, "Y-Y-Yes sir."

The bullies opened the gates and stepped through, walking past the group. Everyone then made their way up to the mansion where Dash and his crew stopped before the front steps. They eyed the mansion and, though none of them wanted to admit it, they trembled with fear on the inside. Dash looked at the front doors and gulped nervously at the thought of stepping into the house.

"We're waiting," called June.

"Don't rush me!" shouted Dash. He turned his gaze over to his gang. "So who wants to go first?"

"I think you should," said Jack.

"Why me?" Dash retorted.

"Because you took the dare," said Snipe.

"And there's no way I'm going in first," said Jack.

"You guys suck!" said Dash.

"Hello?" called Aerrow. "We don't have all night, you know."

"...All right! We're going!" Dash shouted in annoyance.

The bullies then entered together through the front door just as soon Dash opened it. Once the doors had shut, everyone gathered together just as a bright light appeared before them. Amber Pegasus stuck her head out from the light and gestured her new friends to come with her. With that, the group of friends laughed and stepped into the light where it disappeared. The first phase of their payback was now complete.

* * *

Dash, Snipe and Jack all stood within the main hall of Black Manor. It was dark around every hallway, adding to the eerie effect that they all thought the house was haunted. Dash kept calm by standing upright in the darkness while Snipe and Jack huddled close to each other and trembled like a quivering mass of jelly.

The blonde teen turned to his gang and shook his head in embarrassment. He couldn't believe that they were a bunch of cowards, especially in something that he didn't believe existed.

"Would you two idiots cut it out?" said Dash. "You both look like a pair of sissies!"

Snipe and Jack then let go of each other as per their boss's orders. They then looked down at the floor in shame for showing their cowardice in front of Dash.

"Now look," said Dash. "I guess they weren't kidding. This place isn't so bad once you get inside."

Seeing their boss show his courageous side made the others gain confidence. "You're right," said Jack. "This ain't so spooky after all."

"Yeah, I guess not," said Snipe.

"This is gonna be a piece of cake," said Dash.

The gang then walked through the first hall they could see in the moonlight. The paintings they passed by didn't seem to bother them, even though they seemed lifelike. Jack walked by a painting of an elegant woman, not noticing her eyes shifting onto Jack's movements. He turned back to see the painting the way it was, and Jack was left with a suspicious feeling as he walked back with his crew.

Dash and his gang were now near the end of the hall where it split into two sections: one leading into the living room; the other leading into the dining room. An old telephone sat still on a table before the living room, which is where the bullies paused to get a look at their surroundings.

"Man," said Dash. "Now that I've seen this place, I've gotta say it sure is a dump."

"Yeah," said Snipe. "Someone really oughtta tear this place down!"

At that moment, the phone near them started to ring. The sudden noise nearly shocked the gang and wonder how it could still work after many years. They looked at it while it kept ringing. Dash then walked to it and picked up the receiver. Placing it to his ear, he hoped to be talking to someone.

"Hello?" he said.

The only response Dash got from the other line was deep breathing that almost sounded threatening. Dash then hung up the receiver and saw his cronies were expecting something.

"Wrong number," said Dash.

Snipe and Jack were still a little nervous from what happened, and it soon turned to fear when they heard a moaning sound. Dash looked in the direction where he heard it and an odd look was frozen on his face. The sound was coming from a figure wearing a white bed sheet over its body with two holes cut out at the top that looked like eyes. It was a rather pathetic attempt at being a ghost, and Dash thought it was one of the geeks he tried to scare. Snipe and Jack stopped their shaking and also gave the figure an odd look.

"Ooh, that's real scary," Dash said in an unimpressed tone. He walked over and placed his hand over the sheet, saying, "You dweebs wouldn't know anything scary if it came up and bit you on the –"

Dash cut off his sentence when he pulled off the sheet and set his eyes wide in horror. The figure under the sheet was nothing but a mass of spiders grouped together to make it look like a person. The spiders then fell to the floor and starting crawling their way towards the gang. They all screamed horrifically at the sight and ran off to the dining room. Dash quickly opened the door and let his crew inside before slamming it shut and breathing heavily.

"Okay," said Dash. "I'm sure there's a pretty good reason for that."

"...For a bunch of bugs being able to come together and wear a ghost costume?" said Snipe.

"Hey, it could happen!" Dash still wasn't convinced that ghosts were in this house, despite what he just saw.

Jack was walking backwards as he said, "I hope we don't run into any other freaky stuff around here." He then reached the edge of the dining table and knocked over a silver dome covering a plate.

The trio looked to see what was under the dome and their hearts went racing. On the plate was JusSonic's head with his eyes closed and blood pooling around his neck. He then opened his eyes and looked at the bullies. "Dinner is served!" he said.

The gang once again screamed in fright and ran out from the opposite end of the dining room. This time they had entered the living room where they were almost out of breath from running so fast.

"Now can we get out of here?" Jack begged.

"No way!" ordered Dash. "If those losers could last an hour in here, then so can we!"

The leader was then going to sit down on a couch, but when he turned his head he stood back up and shouted when he saw the couch had suddenly grown razor-sharp teeth underneath its cushions. The couch chomped down hard, and Dash got away just in time before his rear was almost bitten.

Everyone then saw all the chairs in the room had now come to life like the couch and also grew a set of teeth. The furniture then slowly walked over to the gang while gnashing their teeth at them, and causing everyone to run out screaming again.

They were now in another hallway, wondering where they should go next. Dash looked around and saw a set of stairs going up. "There!" he said.

The trio headed up the stairs and hoped to get away from the horrors they saw. But as soon as they were halfway to the top, the stairs folded beneath their feet. The gang saw there were standing on nothing and so they all screamed as they slid back down to the first floor. Dash and Jack landed together in a pileup while Snipe kept rolling until he busted through a door.

The burly man stood up and groaned after his tumble. Stars spun around his head while he was still in his dazed state. Snipe hadn't realised that he stumbled into a bathroom as he pulled on the shower curtain covering the bathtub. The moment he saw what was in the tub he became petrified. The person taking a shower was a skeleton with a shower cap over its scalp. The boney figure looked at Snipe and let out a horrified shriek while the man did the same.

Snipe ran out of the bathroom and rejoined his crew. "I don't wanna stay here anymore!" he cried.

"Me neither!" added Jack.

"Well too bad!" said Dash. "This isn't all that scary. And besides, we still haven't seen any ghosts."

Dash stopped in front of a mirror to look at it and he watched his reflection shift into Amber Pegasus. The gang's leader backed away to see the transformation and felt his lower lip tremble.

"Well," said Amber Pegasus, "if I'm not a ghost, could I do this?"

At that moment, the spirit then pulled down her face to reveal her skull. Fire then raged within her eyes and mouth as she uttered a disturbing cry and exited the mirror, headed straight for the trio.

Dash, Snipe and Jack stood with their bodies shivering with fear. The leader turned to his crew and said, "Okay, now we can leave!"

The order was given, and so Dash and his crew ran away screaming. Amber Pegasus saw that her plan had worked and so she placed her face back where it was supposed to be and laughed.

By that time the bullies had returned to the main hall where they ran straight for the exit. But before they got close, the entire floor shook with force. The three of them stopped and waited for whatever horror would come out to strike fear in them. When it finally halted, they watched as another ghost came out of the floor and hovered a few feet in front of them.

"Leaving so soon?" said BlueTiger321. "I thought you enjoyed your time here."

Dash was absolutely terrified by the ghost. So much so that he got on his knees and begged for mercy. "Please don't hurt us!" he said through tears. "We just wanna get out and go home!"

BlueTiger321 rubbed his chin as he took Dash's plea into consideration. "Do you promise to leave Aerrow and his friends alone?" he said.

"Yes! We'll never bother 'em again!" said Dash.

"Hmm..." said the ghost. "Let me think about it."

Snipe and Jack were also scared senseless by the ghost. They got close and hugged each other for support. But then Snipe looked down and noticed something odd about Jack. Whatever it was made him disgusted.

"Aw man!" said Snipe. "Did you pee your pants?"

Jack merely shifted his eyes and said, "Um... maybe?"

BlueTiger321 was still thinking over Dash's request when he suddenly lifted up his arms. He was now using his ghostly powers to control the bullies telekinetically as they were now frozen in place. Then in one swift motion, the ghost directed his arms to the door, shooting the trio out of the mansion. Dash, Snipe and Jack screamed as they were thrown out and hit the ground. They realised the ghost released his hold on them so they took this chance to run to the gates.

The gang was running as fast as they could, wanting to get away from the mansion after what they just witnessed. The exit was in view and they hastened their pace, but then the gates closed shut by themselves. This forced the bullies to stop in their tracks. Now they had nowhere to go.

"Oh great, now what?" said Dash.

Just then, the three ghosts appeared before them again, making Dash and his crew shudder in fright again.

"You will pay for all the terrible things you three have done!" said JusSonic.

"Never again will you prey on anyone for your own amusement!" said Amber Pegasus.

BlueTiger321 looked down at the trio maliciously and said, "Now you shall witness the ultimate wrath of Hell!"

The lead ghost then raised his arms and his hands glowed with green light. This had caused fissures in the earth that also emitted the same green glow. All of a sudden, hands emerged from the fractures that grabbed onto the earth and pulled up a horrible sight. There was Aerrow and all his friends turned into zombies. Their flesh was now a pale green, their clothes were ragged and covered with soil, the pupils from their eyes were missing, and their teeth had become rotten.

The zombies walked slow and headed towards the gang while uttering a deep moan. They were all hungry for brains and Dash and his crew was their closest target.

Dash, Snipe and Jack were all paralysed with fear when the zombies inched closer. The ghosts had prevented their only means of escape, which meant they would soon become food for the zombies.

The zombie Aerrow got up close to Dash's trembling body. He leaned in close to his face, smiled and then said, "Boo."

Dash, Snipe and Jack then screamed at the top of their lungs. This, in turn, caused them to turn around and run. The combined force of their running was strong enough to break through the gates and run off into the forest.

As everyone watched them run away cowardly, they could hear them cry in unison, "Mommy!" The bullies vanished into the night after viewing a truly horrifying experience on Halloween.

When the gang was gone, everyone then let out a cry of laughter as their revenge had been served.

"That was the best!" said Danny.

"I don't think I'll ever forget this!" said June.

"Yeah," said Aerrow. "And I must say that we make pretty good zombies."

Amber Pegasus then waved her hand and spread a yellow wave of energy over the group. As their bodies got touched by the light, it changed everyone's appearance back to normal.

"Thanks, you guys," said Aerrow. "You really went out of your way to help us."

"It was no problem," said BlueTiger321. "We would always do anything for our friends."

"It was worth it just to see the looks on their faces," said JusSonic.

"So what will you all be doing now?" asked Amber Pegasus.

"Well," said Piper, "we were originally supposed to have a Halloween party."

"But then all these problems happened, which wound up to us coming here instead," said Katara.

BlueTiger321 then understood their problem. He took a moment to think before snapping his fingers and saying, "I've got it! Why don't we help you throw the best party you could ever imagine?"

"It's the least we can do for all you've done," said Amber Pegasus.

The group looked at each other and then smiled. They had already come this far in one night so they might as well go through with the suggestion.

Aerrow looked at the spirits and said, "All right! Then let's party!"

* * *

BlueTiger321: LOL! I'm glad Dash and his goons got punked!

Aerrow: They deserved it too!

Piper: Bunch of jerks!

Sokka: And we'll never let 'em live it down!

BlueTiger321: So folks, the story's not over yet. There's still the greatest Halloween party left. Be sure to stay tuned for the final chapter because it's gonna be epic! So, until next time...

Katara: Read and review!


	8. Chapter 8: Dance of Death

Chapter 8: Dance of Death

BlueTiger321: Hi everyone! This is the final chapter of my Halloween tale, and I think it's a good ending after everything that was said and done. Before I begin, I would like to say the music and people that appear in this story are property of the greatest heavy metal band ever! You'll see which one it is. Also, credit goes to LyricsFreak for having the correct lyrics to this song. So now, it's time to party!

* * *

The group of friends all stood outside the courtyard of Black Manor. It seemed that now they were getting the Halloween party they've always wanted. And after everything they've endured tonight, they all thought they deserved it.

None of them could contain their excitement. This setting was perfect for staging a Halloween party and they had the help of their new ghostly friends to create it. To them, it was going to be the event of a lifetime.

"This is great," said Aerrow. "Now we're finally going to have a party tonight."

"Yeah," said Danny. "Who would've known we'd have to go through all this just to get it."

"But there's so much we have to do," said Katara. "We have to set everything up, find some costumes, invite some guests, and let's not forget the music."

The three ghosts hovered in the air to get everyone's attention. They all looked up to see the spirits smiling. "You leave everything to us," said BlueTiger321.

With that the ghosts brought their hands together and concentrated their powers. It was then they let go and spread out their arms, releasing a blue wave of energy that covered the entire courtyard. Aerrow and the others waited for something to happen. Everyone looked astonished as different objects appeared out of nowhere. There were giant rock formations that looked like skulls, jack-o-lanterns with eerie faces carved into them, candlesticks burning with flames in a rainbow of colours, tombstones with spirits coming out from the ground, and a large dance floor with stage lights flashing everywhere. The most impressive display was a gigantic stage forming in front of Black Manor to give it a haunted house theme. It was now a fantastic setting for a Halloween party.

Everyone looked amazed at what their new friends had accomplished. It was better than any of them could ever hope for, and they all knew it couldn't have been possible if they never came to Black Manor.

"Whoa, you guys rock!" said Finn.

"This has got to be the greatest setting for a party I've ever seen!" said Aang.

"Yeah," said Toph. "I can't see and even I'm impressed."

"I can't wait to see the looks on everyone's face when they see this," said June.

"It's not over yet," said JusSonic.

"All of you still need your costumes," said Amber Pegasus.

The female ghost then moved her hands around in circles and then stopped. In that moment a pink light formed from her palms and headed straight for her friends. They all froze as the light consumed them.

When the flash was gone, everyone looked at themselves to see they were now wearing costumes: Aerrow was dressed as Superman; Piper as Cleopatra; Finn as Dick Tracy; Junko as a caveman; Stork as a Ghostbuster; Radarr as a skeletal version of himself; Danny and June as Link and Zelda from _The Legend of Zelda_; Aang as Mario from _Super Mario Bros._; Katara as a belly dancer; Sokka as a vampire; Toph as a witch; and Zuko as Dante from _Devil May Cry_. All of them looked ecstatic as how their costumes looked so detailed.

"Now _these_ are Halloween costumes," said Aerrow.

Junko looked over at Stork and said, "Nice proton pack."

Stork looked at Junko and said, "Thanks. Nice, um... pelt."

"How great do I look?" Toph asked.

"You look wonderful," replied Sokka. "They had you pegged as a witch perfectly." The comment had then earned Sokka a punch in his arm from Toph after making the joke.

Radarr even smiled at how the bones matched the places on his body over the black costume. He churred happily that he looked especially scary.

"Now how are gonna get all our guests here on such short notice?" said Zuko.

"Like this!" replied JusSonic.

The ghost then put his fingers to his head as he read his friend's thoughts. All the images of what their guests looked like were now a part of his mind. Once JusSonic was finished calculating the number of guests, he pointed his hands to the dance floor and sent out a red beam of light. The energy it created had then transported all the guests – dressed in Halloween costumes – onto the dance floor where they stood around wondering how they got here.

A girl named Terra (_Teen Titans_) dressed as a mummy said, "What's going on?"

A boy named Raimundo dressed as a pirate heard the question and replied, "I don't know, but it looks like an awesome place to be on Halloween."

Aerrow and the others had gotten onto the stage to address everyone. The Sky Knight grabbed the microphone and said, "Hello everyone!" The sound from the amplifiers carried his voice across the courtyard, and everyone turned around to see him. "I know you all must be wondering why you just ended up here. It's because you're all welcome guests to our Halloween party!"

The red-haired teen paused for a moment to hear the crowd cheer for both the setting and for being at a party on one of the most momentous holidays in Toon City.

Aerrow spoke again once the cheers died down. "Now before we begin," he said, "I'd just like to say that none of this would've been possible without the support of our new friends. So I'd like to welcome them to the stage. Please give a round of applause for JusSonic, Amber Pegasus and BlueTiger321!"

In an instant the three spirits rose from beneath the stage to greet all the guests. Upon seeing them, everyone shouted with fright at seeing actual ghosts and thought they were dangerous.

"No, no, it's all right!" said Aerrow, trying to calm everyone down. "These ghosts are good!"

The message had gotten through, and so everyone stopped shouting and heard Aerrow's explanation.

The Sky Knight said, "These ghosts are very loyal and trustworthy. My friends and I have each witnessed that they would go beyond the call of duty for the sake of others. If not by some random chance, we wouldn't be celebrating here tonight. Everything you see here is the result of the dedication from these three spirits. And I, for one, would like to call them my friends."

Aerrow's speech was finished, and all seemed quiet. That was until all the guests began to clap their hands and cheer for their hosts. Everyone on stage smiled at the satisfaction they had gotten. When it was done, Aerrow and the others walked off and left the ghosts on stage.

"Thank you, Aerrow!" said BlueTiger321. He amplified his voice so loudly that he didn't need the microphone. "Now I say we get this party started!" Everyone reacted with a cheer. "For the music tonight, I think we should have something special to mark this occasion. So ladies and gentleman, for your viewing pleasure, I give you the one, the only, Iron Maiden!"

The ghost raised himself from the stage and shot out his arms. Lightning formed from his fingertips that struck the stage. Sparks flew as the massive power had transported six humans. There on the platform was Bruce Dickinson, Janick Gers, Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Nicko McBrain – the members of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden. All the members were holding their instruments and looked around bewildered at what happened to them.

"Hey, this isn't Stockholm!" said Harris.

"What is this place?" said Gers.

Before they could ask anyone where they were, they could see a huge crowd in front of them. The sound of cheers filled their ears, indicating they should play.

Bruce Dickinson turned to his fellow members and said, "Well, I guess we should give 'em what they want."

Aerrow and the others had already joined the crowd and waited for the music to start. Just then, Piper turned to her friend and said, "Hey, Aerrow?"

"Yeah Piper?" asked the Sky Knight.

"For what it's worth, I'm really glad we came here."

Everyone else heard Piper's comment and they all nodded in agreement. The red-haired teen smiled at his friends, knowing that an unfortunate event turned out to be extraordinary.

The first song was now playing as the sounds of guitars mixed with bass filled the air. Bruce Dickinson got up to the microphone and sang:

_Let me tell you a story to chill the bones_

_About a thing that I saw_

_One night wandering in the everglades_

_I'd one drink but no more_

Everyone kept cheering as the music continued.

_I was rambling, enjoying the bright moonlight_

_Gazing up at the stars_

_Not aware of a presence so near to me_

_Watching my every move_

JusSonic decide to add mist onto the stage to add an eerie effect to go along with the song. The band was still able to play, despite the sudden change.

_Feeling scared and I fell to my knees_

_As something rushed me from the trees_

_Took me to an unholy place_

_And that is where I fell from grace_

In the next verse, BlueTiger321 had unleashed a cluster of spirits that wandered around the top of the crowd, which got everyone more excited.

_Then they summoned me over to join in with them_

_To the dance of the dead_

_Into the circle of fire I followed them_

_Into the middle I was led_

The group of friends all smiled at how they were now enjoying themselves. They, along with their guests, began to dance along with the spirits that BlueTiger321 unleashed.

_As if time had stopped still I was numb with fear_

_But still I wanted to go_

_And the blaze of the fire did no hurt upon me_

_As I walked onto the coals_

The sound of drums had now entered where the music increased with intensity.

_And then I felt I was in a trance_

_And my spirit was lifted from me_

_And if only someone had the chance_

_To witness what happened to me_

Bruce Dickinson had then raised his voice over the next verse, getting the crowd more energized.

_And I danced and I pranced and I sang with them_

_All had death in their eyes_

_Lifeless figures they were undead all of them_

_They had ascended from Hell_

The crowd erupted with cheers at the last verse. The sound of guitars then echoed across the courtyard as the song continued. A moment later, Bruce Dickinson resumed his singing:

_As I danced with the dead_

_My free spirit was laughing and howling down at me_

_Below my undead body_

_Just danced the circle of dead_

_Until the time came to reunite us both_

_My spirit came back down to me_

_I didn't know if I was alive or dead_

_As the others all joined in with me_

The guitars resumed their playing while everyone danced around the scene along with the ghosts. It was so joyous that no one seemed to mind their presence.

_By luck then a skirmish started_

_And took the attention away from me_

_When they took their gaze from me_

_Was the moment that I fled_

_I ran like hell faster than the wind_

_But behind I did not glance_

_One thing that I did not dare_

_Was to look just straight ahead_

The solo then played, which caused Finn to slide on the floor and play his air guitar. All his friends watched in embarrassment to see their friend once again do his lousy guitar playing. Oddly enough, all the guests began to cheer him on and some even began to do air guitar themselves. Aerrow and the others were surprised by this so they decided to join in and play air guitar along with Finn.

Eventually, the three spirits joined with everyone in the crowd and danced along with them. Never before have they ever been thankful to be around so many wonderful people and to be in such a spectacular place.

_When you know that your time has come around_

_You know you'll be prepared for it_

_Say your last goodbyes to everyone_

_Drink and say a prayer for it_

Everyone soon cheered on for Iron Maiden as the song was nearing its end.

_When you're lying in your sleep, when you're lying in your bed_

_And you wake from your dreams to go dancing with the dead_

_When you're lying in your sleep, when you're lying in your bed_

_And you wake from your dreams to go dancing with the dead_

The outro had now played, causing everyone to dance along with the rhythm. Eventually the song dulled down and everyone quieted to listen to the end.

_To this day I guess I'll never know_

_Just why they let me go_

_But I'll never go dancing no more_

'_Til I dance with the dead_

The song had finished and everyone continued to cheer as the party went on through the night. And only a few people would know that it all started when they stepped into a haunted house.

**THE END

* * *

**

BlueTiger321: Wow! Wasn't that party awesome?

Aerrow: You bet!

Piper: I never had so much fun in my life!

Finn and Sokka: Whoo! Encore!

Junko: The whole story wasn't bad either.

Danny and June: Uh-huh!

Aang: Now what's going to happen?

Katara: Nothing. The story's over.

Toph: What? It can't be.

Zuko: Sorry, but the author's got other things to do.

BlueTiger321: Indeed, I do. Anyway folks, thank you all for reading my story and thank you to those of you who left comments, and I hope you all have a happy Halloween! And once again, for legal purposes, I do not own Iron Maiden or any of their songs, but I will say they're awesome! So, until next time...

Everyone: Read and review!


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